Victoriam Speramus
by sycamoreleaf
Summary: It was time to forget about the past, to ignore all differences and focus on the present. With a deadly Virus flowing in the land of the dead, both shinigamis and arrancars must work together to find a way to stop it...before it shall be too late. IxR UxO
1. Prolog

"One time there was no death, there was no mortal or immortal,

First Bleach fanfic so be nice. Now, there's been a plot bunny keeping me awake for a couple of months now and now it's finally revealing it's self to the public. I will take my time to thank **Crazy Laughter **for beta-reading this and supporting me on this (Thanks again!).

**Note!** I do not own Bleach or any of its characters! Nor do I own "Rugaciunea Unui Dac" (trans: The preyer of a Dac), I just translated a part of it.

* * *

**"_One time there was no death, there was no mortal or immortal,__  
Nor the seed of life that gives you breath,__  
There was no today, nor tomorrow, nor yesterday, nor ever,  
For one was all and all was one;  
The time the earth, the sky, the heaves, the entire World  
Were among the ones that never were,  
That time there was only You alone, and often I do wonder:  
Who's God is the one I bow to now?"_**

**_(__M. Eminescu's "Rugaciunea unui Dac" – translation by Jessica P.)_**

_The world is moved by questions; each "why" is like a portal that transports you into a world of movement, it offers you that aching desire to, to understand and to acknowledge a fact, or to simply have a purpose in life._

_The need for a reason – that has kept us all alive from the very beginning. Take that away and we are like rocks, mere objects with no soul, and no need to survive. Without a reason, we can no longer live. It is as simple as letting someone drive their dagger through your heart. Reason is like a shield, and without it, without that thing that sustains you, you fall – a hopeless victim of the darkness that at one point threatens to devour us all._

"Achu!"

"Bless you."

"Thank you. My, this fog is horrible. I can't see a blasted thing. And now I'm catching a cold!"

"Now-now, there's no need for language. Remember what they say: fate is cruel; so be grateful that your fate is to have a cold."

**"_Cruel is the fate that awai__ts us all – we breath, we eat, we drink, we hate, we hurt, we laugh, we love, we cry, we live our lives, but that never is enough. Soon enough, after our bodies have passed their time and the souls have long since passed, all evidence of our existence will eventually seize to exist …"_**

**_(__Jessica P.)_**

_Few are those that managed to leave something that survived through the ages, fewer are those whose names are still remembered, and even fewer are those that are remembered for doing something good in this world …_

"Hey, what is that over there?"

"Where? I don't see anything."

"Right there! Can't you… Oh my God…"

_Long before __Seireitei was created, even long before Hueco Mundo had been given a name, a creature that no one remembers did something so before his time and so terribly horrifying that in the end it lead to it's death. It was the one because of whom countless lost their chance to be remembered, to find a purpose, or to simply exist. It had been the first creature ever killed in the afterlife, the one that brought the idea of "kill" to the world. _

_All of it is but a distant memory, one that soon became a legend, that which at its turn became a myth, and now, in the end, only a forgotten fragment of our memory, forever sealed away behind oak doors, never to see the light of day again._

_But as history has taught us, no secret can remain hidden, no matter the effort. Sooner or later, each dark corner will reveal its secrets to the light, and the older it is, the bigger the chance that the impact will be…_

… _for the wors__e…_

Seireitei was unusually busy today, and such intense activity could not go unnoticed by Mayuri Kurotsuchi, captain of the Gotei 13's 12th Division. Usually, he would try and ignore as much as he could, but a series of recent events kept him on his toes more than usual. Especially when there was banging on his door every ten minutes.

"Taichou, we need your help!" someone kept yelling from the other side of the door. "Please open, we have a situation! Kurotsuchi-taichou!"

Enough was enough. "Nemu, what is happening out there?" The girl in question came to his side, files still in hand.

"I am not yet sure, Mayuri-taichou, but the hospital wing is overcrowded, almost like in the Winter War."

Mayuri did not give his daughter the chance to say anymore, for he already was following the shinigami that had disturbed him for the last hour, yet had chosen to ignore up until till now. Said shinigami, was talking rather fast for his liking as he was moving like a disorientated fly through the hallway, towards the autopsy room.

"We found two officers today. Maya and I were on patrol and we encountered them when … I never had seen anything like it, sir! They were all … and there was … Oh God! They were in a critical state! We tried to bring them to the 4th Division for treatment, but we were too late! Oh God, I will never forget all that blood!" But Mayuri was not interested in what he will never forget.

"What happened? Were they attacked by hollows?" Nemu asked as they reached the autopsy room, just as Retsu Unohana, captain of the 4th Division, was leaving. She could not help to overhear.

"They sure looked like it!" Mayuri's and Nemu's companion said, trying to hide his still fresh terror. "But I don't know … I really never seen anything like it –"

"You are mistaken …" Captain Unohana said in an even yet worried voice. Noticing the strange looks they gave her, she decided to continue. "The wounds you have seen were not placed there by hollows, nor by anybody else. Those wounds … have been inflicted on them by their own body."

Shock had taken over the unfortunate shinigami that just happened to find the bodies of his former friends, Nemu was trying her best to understand and Mayuri stormed into the room to see it for himself.

"What the – "

For once in his life, Mayuri Kurotsuchi was at a lack of words. The 12th Division Captain was usually a man that was hardly impressed by anything that once had been breathing. He was used to disfigured creatures; he dissected hollows for a hobby and often looked at people as potential test subjects. But this time however, not even he could have been able to stay impassive at such a sight. The remains of two shinigami lay on the operation tables of his laboratory, and if it was not for the cloths still on their bodies, then he would have never known what they once were.

"Unohana-taichou! Kurotsuchi-taichou!"

"What is it?"

"Five hollows have been found dead in the human world. They all died in the same manner as the two shinigami that were discovered earlier today!"

"What?"

"Taichou! Unohana-taichou, Isane onee-san has confirmed tree more deaths in the hospital wing. We think they died in the same way as the other two!"

Mayuri heard them talking, but he was not listening to a single word. He was not the type to be stunned, but at the moment, he was. As a scientist, he took pleasure in finding answers to every little question that crawled into his head. But as they say: there is a first for everything, and for the first time Mayuri started fearing the answer to the question that now dominated his thoughts.

"What the hell is happening here?"

* * *

A/N: Well? Liked it? Hated it? Think I need to get a life (I know you want to say yes at this)? Well, chapter one is one the way in any day now. Now I have to get a break from the computer. I've been working all evening. Well, see you soon! (amd it will be longer)


	2. Dura necessitas

Well, here's the firth chapter people

Well, here's the firth chapter people. Again, let me take the time to thank **Crazy Laughter** for beta-reading this. (Arigato, ototo!) Note that this is **FanFiction dot net** witch means I do not own Bleach! If I would then I would be Asian and famous and Ichigo would have confessed his love for Rukia by now.

And now, on with the story!

* * *

_**Dura necessitas (tough necessities)**_

Kurosaki Ichigo was watching how the summer sun was slowly beginning to set, completely ignoring the teacher that was currently trying to hold her math lesson.

It was Friday evening, which meant he had no school tomorrow, and even better, he had no other business with Soul Society or Hueco Mundo, or anything related to the fact that he was a substitute shinigami. And because of that, his last two years of live had been like a slow walk through hell. Oh, he forgot – that was exactly what they were.

It has been no less than six months since the Winter War and Aizen were no more. He never actually knew what happened to the bastard, but Rukia had told him that his fate is of no importance to us all. What she meant by that he still didn't know, but if that meant that the creep will never come back, it was all-right for him.

"And if x is zero then y would be …? Kurosaki?"

Oh crap. "Pardon me, sensei?"

"Out in your little imaginary world again, aren't we, Kurosaki-kun? Must I remind you that the week-end starts after class, and not before?"

Laughter erupted from the back of the class, and Ichigo only managed to mutter a "sorry ma'am'" before the bell finally decided to ring, marking the end of the school curriculum for the day. After noting down his homework, Ichigo moved to catch up with the others, pretending that he couldn't hear the teacher yelling after him.

"I see you slipped away from detention again, didn't you Kurosaki?"

"Give me a break, Ishida!" Ichigo replied to the Quincy's sarcastic question. Although he now thought of the teen as his friend, he still didn't like how he was always acting so superior to everyone just because he happens to still have the highest grades in their class, the whole school actually. "You could have warned me that she saw me, you know."

"If I would have then both you and I would have gotten into trouble. Honestly Kurosaki, when will you learn? At this rate you're never going to make it to University."

He wanted to tell him to shove off, but then again, the creep was right. This was his last year before superior studies, which meant he needed to give school his full attention if he ever wanted to become someone in his life. Still, for some unknown reason he felt like he was not made for that kind of life.

His life was like a puzzle and he didn't like puzzles at all. In fact he hated them more than any other thing he knew of. They were always so complicated, so very hard to solve and even twisted sometimes. It was not like he was dumb. He actually was above average in intellectual level, and he knew that if he put his mind up to it he could enter any University he wanted. The only problem was that he didn't know if he could keep it up for so long.

He was not the type to take things at the time. He remembered when he was training to become stronger in order to save Rukia. His training had been sped up to only three days instead of the usually hundred years it normally took an ordinary soul reaper to achieve Bankai. And there was also the time when he trained with the visoreds to control his hollow. Again, he was forced to speed it up. Every time he needed to get better at something he usually did it in a hurry; he needed to feel the stress, to feel he was moving. Taking one step at the time was not his style at all.

But still, it was nice to be able to slow it down a little, to not have a time limit – to simply be able to take your time.

He watched his friends chat in front of him. Ishida Uryu was now holding an apparently deep conversation with Arisawa Tatsuki; Chad was just listening, much like he always did, but always answered if ever questioned; and Inoue Orihime…

"Kurosaki-kun, are you all-right? You look puzzled."

It was only then that Ichigo noticed that he had spaced-out. "No, Inoue. I'm fine. I was just thinking about the last few months."

Orihime just gave him a smile, a smile that didn't seem to fit. He knew the reason why though – because for such a long time she was a prisoner, Aizen's hostage and the Espada's plaything. Ichigo dared not to think of all the things that happened to her in that horrible place, of what they had done to her.

But he knew Orihime was a strong girl. She will get over it, and maybe, in time, he will be able to do so too. To forget about fights, to not be worried about his friends, to feel safe and simply at peace… No hollows, no arrancars, no Espada, no soul reapers, no visoreds…

For the first time in a long time it seemed that he was finally free from it all.

"Hey, tomorrow's Saturday!" Orihime burst out all of the sudden, her once cheerful voice apparently returning to her. "Would you guys like to go see a movie or something? I heard they have discounts for students this month."

"You're right, Orihime!" Tatsuki chirped in. "They didn't have too many spectators in the last few months so they try and give the 'younger population' some good reasons to come. The movies aren't worth a damn but it' be nice to just hang around."

"Yes! And if we're lucky we might get ourselves some free popcorn! And I might even convince the hot-dog seller to let us put some ketchup and mustard on them."

They all sweat-dropped at that. Honestly, that girl was thinking nothing but food – the oddest kind, mind you. "That sounds … interesting, Inoue-san …" said Ishida, just to break the silence.

"So, you guys going?"

"Count me in!" said Tatsuki. "I have nothing else planned so I believe I could…" was Ishida's response. Chad simply nodded and Orihime was the one who asked so her answer was clear to all. Ichigo, on the other hand, seemed to have other plans.

"Sorry guys, I promised my old man I'd be home before supper. And I don't want him to jump on me today."

"Now that's unexpected, Kurosaki. Usually you enjoy those little family fights of yours." Ishida said.

"What should I say about you? I'm surprised your old man didn't put you in a hospital by now." Ichigo shot back.

Ichigo knew that was a pathetic come-back, even for him. But he really didn't feel like putting his head to use anymore.

Ignoring the Quincy's now pouring insults he beds his friends' good-bye and headed down his way.

"Do you think Kurosaki-kun's all-right, Tatsuki-chan?" asked a worried Orihime as Ichigo was getting further away from them.

"Who knows …" she paused to look at the other two boys: Ishida adjusting his clothes after trying to get out of Chad's grip while the tall Mexican's eyes did not leave Ichigo's departing form. "Maybe he just needs a little more time."

* * *

Quiet streets, a pleasant breeze, pleasant scents floating in the air and the restful spiritual pressure that could be felt from every corner of Karakura Town – yes, everything stayed the same. It has been two years since he was able to simply stand back and enjoy a nice walk home.

Any normal man would be pleased and overall delighted to have such a life. But Kurosaki Ichigo was never quite the type of man to be considered normal. He felt his friends' stares burn on his back as he kept on walking further away from them and he felt bad. He kicked a stray can that met his feet while his mind wandered on its own. He felt terrible. His dad was not waiting him for dinner. In fact, he was away with the girls for a father-daughters thing for the rest of the week. For the first time since he knew himself, he lied to his friends.

It's not that he didn't want to be with them and it wasn't the movies either. No, he enjoyed their company and presence very much; but he just felt like he needed some time alone.

He tried to remember all that happened in the last two years – all that came and went from the day Rukia stepped into his life, literally.

_Those were the good times. At first he only needed to wipe out hollows and to see that all those stray souls would find peace. Those creatures were never a real bother. He enjoyed fighting and even more, he enjoyed winning. It was nice that he finally found something that he could use to get rid of all the extra adrenaline his body had. Up until that moment he was like a beast, a wild creature locked away in a cage. Rukia was the key to that cage. She came to him, unlocked the cage and left him free. Fighting, winning, losing, hurting, getting hurt himself, feeling fright and even horror – at those times he felt free. _

Why was he thinking about it anyway? Those days were long gone, and they sure as well wouldn't come back …

Just to pass the time he decided to go over to the riverbank. Maybe that would clear his mind. But he knew that something was terribly wrong with him, and he was afraid that he couldn't do anything about it.

As he reached the river his thoughts were once again drifting towards the past. He remembered what a big change it was for him when he had to save Rukia. He fought only once with a shinigami and he was already terrified of the outcome. He knew he had to save her, but in the same time he knew it was beyond his powers to do so. But then, hope bloomed in the form of a lazy shopkeeper – Urahara Kisuke.

The sun was already very close to the horizon by the time he got to his destination. He could still hear some birds chirping somewhere close by, but he paid no mind to it. He just looked at the water, and how its usual blue color from that day's noon had turned into a warm orange, sparkling in the still golden rays of sun.

_Training was something new for him. Usually he just followed his instincts, using only a few basic moves he knew from childhood years, but nothing more. To actually be training with Urahara was a change, but he found that he enjoyed it. The intense use of adrenaline was like a blessing for him. When fighting he felt alive, he felt like he existed. _

He looked at his reflection in the water, and was disappointed in what he saw. That was his face, he was sure of it, but he hated it. Not bearing to look at himself any longer, he turned his eyes towards the ground, eying his feet. He kicked a random rock in his way, which rolled away all the way into the water, creating calm wrinkles that got bigger and bigger, blurring Ichigo's reflection.

_First Seireitei, then Hueco Mundo, and then the Winter War … Training, pain, more training, victory, failure, defeat, salvation, death … All those things he experienced were so intense, so lively, so real … The world he was in right now, it didn't feel that way. Now, he felt like he lived in a dream, and he had to wake up!_

"Damn it!" he swore out loud, a few birds taking flight, frightened by Ichigo's sudden outburst.

He knew what was wrong with him. He needed a way to burn all that extra adrenaline in his body, he needed to move, he needed to get rid of all that spiritual energy he had stocked up inside his body for the last two years and he needed to be free.

Ichigo knew he began to sound like that arrancar, Grimmjow, but he didn't care in the least. Somehow he envied the creep. That guy always spoke his mind and almost every time he was thinking about provoking Ichigo into a fight. At first he reminded him of Kenpachi, but then again, that was saying a bit too much. Both of them were so wrapped-up in that entire fight-to-the-end thing that Ichigo did _not _want to know how it was to have them _both_ in the same room.

The water calmed down and Ichigo could once again see his reflection clearly in the now relatively still water. This time he picked up a big rock from his feet and threw it in. The rock hit the water's surface with a big splash, making the image even blurrier then the last time. Ichigo really started to hate his own face.

"I can't stand this any longer!" he finally snapped.

He really should start thinking of getting a new hobby. All this thinking about the past was driving him crazy. What happened – happened, and what was, well, was in the past – not now. End of story!

_Right after that fiasco with Aizen ended, Soul Society signed a treaty with the arrancars. Shinigami were to keep out of Hueco Mundo and arrancars would stay away from Sereitei. Hollows could still go to the Living World if that was their desire, no treaty could change that, but they will be punished if they ever hurt another living soul. In other words, things were to be just like they were before. As long as each party was to keep to their side of the barging, a fragile yet stabile peace was to exist between the two realms._

_But it didn't need a genius to know that all this political show was just a show, because nobody could feel that pleasant feeling of safety real peace brings. _

"Maybe I should just go home …"

Just as he turned around, Ichigo felt a strong reiatsu coming towards him – closer and closer … It was not as suffocating as Zaraki's, but it was still a strong one, and suspiciously familiar. He looked around, trying to find the source. He looked everywhere; looked at the building's roof tops, looked at the bridge, looked at the other side of the river and then at his left and right. While turning again, the water's wrinkles caught his eyes. They were beginning to fade and he could make out an image within them. He could see himself, but he could see another figure as well. He looked closer and secretly wished he never threw that rock. When the water finally became calm enough for him to see the reflection clearly, he turned around, fully-alarmed, to see the man standing further up on the riverbank.

"You…"

Out of all the faces he knew, his was the one his mind was able to reproduce with the upmost of ease. Those emotionless yet dominant green eyes, that paper-pale skin, that graceful and calculated figure … He was the one person he never managed to beat.

"Ulquiorra Schiffer…"

* * *

**Note that the next chapter won't come out until I will get at lest five reviews. Now, scroll down to the bottom and hit that button with a "go" on it. Come on, I know you want to!**


	3. De omnibus dubitandum est

Done

Done! I a surprised that you actually read this … and some of you actually left something for me! I thank thee! Well, since I got more then five reviews since my last update, I'm going to keep to my word and treat you all with a new chapter.

Finding a title for this one was a little harder then for the first two (duh) and after a lot of taught I came to tree possible solutions (I shall only be giving the English translation since I know not many understand Latin): **Everything must be put under the sigh of doubt** (was in favor of both Ichigo's and Ulquiorra's point of view - it describes both the doubt they have for one another as well as for themselfs) **The passing of time is irreversible** (fit's Ulqui's pov better since in this chapter he actually is aware of how precious time is) and **It is very grave, the power of habits **(more fitting for Ichigo since he takes a habit of thinking that everyone who suddenly comes out of the blue is out to get him - the power of habit). After much deliberation, I was close to chosing the third option but then I noticed that I could use it better in another chapter, so I chose 1.

So, without further delay, on with the story!

* * *

_**De omnibus dubitandum est (Everything must be put under the sigh of doubt)**_

"Ulquiorra Schiffer …" Ichigo growled dangerously at the pale-skinned arrancar.

The person in question did not show any reaction, nor did Ichigo expect him to. He just continued to watch the substitute shinigami like a devoted scientist would do with its sample – analyzing it from all angles, trying to find out what made it tick.

Ichigo took note to be extra careful on what to wish for in the future, for as much as he wanted a fight he most certainly didn't want to face this particular ex-espada. He couldn't remember another enemy that was as cruel and heartless as Ulquiorra was. Secretly, he feared to battle him, for he knew that with his level of power he had little to no chances in defeating him. And if he took a moment to think of it, nether were his chances of coming out of it _alive._

"Greetings, shinigami…"

The moment the words made their way out of the arrancar's mouth, Ichigo used his seal of approval to turn into his shinigami form, heading towards Ulquiorra at full-speed. He tried to deliver the first blow, knowing that waiting for him to start would be suicide. But just like the first time they fought, Ulquiorra blocked Zangetsu's blade with just one hand.

"I have not come here to fight you, shinigami." said the hollow in a flat voice and Ichigo drew back, not letting his guard down.

"Last time we met you were be the one giving out reasons to have me fight you, and now you expect me to believe that you came all the way from Hueco Mundo to simply chat?" Ichigo spat out angrily, preparing to release his Bankai.

"I do not take a habit in "chatting" as you put it, but before I reveal my reason for coming I think it would be wise for you to return to your body before you cause any more commotion."

"What the hell do you mean?"

At that Ulquiorra simply held up a slender finger, pointing towards something that was coming from Ichigo's right. Automatically, Ichigo turned to see an old man running towards them with a concerned look on his face. Ichigo's eyes then met the form of his body and only then noticed how lifeless it looked.

"Oh, shit!" Ichigo ran for his body when something hit him. "How will I know you won't do something funny while I'm mortal?" he asked, tuning back at the hollow that seemed to not have moved since he had first appeared.

"You have my word that I won't." he responded as emotionless as always. Ichigo didn't trust Ulquiorra enough to believe in "his word", but this time he would have to take a chance. God only knows what Ishida will do to him if he was to find out about this.

He entered his body just as the old man had kneeled in front of it.

"Kid, are you okay?"

Ichigo, now in his body, blinked a couple of times in order to water his eyes. He will need to remember to close them next time he'll leave his body like that. Sitting up, he put on a false smile for the older of the two.

"Sure thing, old man! What made you ask something like that?"

Old man, as Ichigo had named him, didn't look convinced. "Are you sure about that son? I saw you faint right on the spot."

'Shit!' Ichigo had to use his imagination.

"W-well, you see, I didn't faint as you think. I-I threw myself like that."

'That's it!'

"Yes. You see, I had a few things on my mind and I needed to lie down to think them over. It's just that I sat down too suddenly. SO it might have looked like a dropped, but I just wanted to sit down."

Said man looked even less convinced then before. "But you were not blinking nor breathing when I arrived."

"Oh, that …" Ichigo couldn't think of anything plausible enough. How he wished Rukia was here. "In … order to take my mind off of something I wanted to see … how long I could last without blinking … while holding my breath. It helps me forget about some things and all … Focus on the task at hand how some would say."

Old man didn't look at all convinced. "Well, if you say you're all right …"

"I sure as hell am, so don't worry about me old man. I'll, just be on my way now …" he picked up his school bag and headed towards the opposite direction, trying ever so hard to look like a normal teenager.

"That was the most pathetic chain of excuses I have ever heard." came the voice of one pale arrancar. Ichigo noticed that Ulquiorra was now walking besides him, eyes closed and hands in pockets.

"Well what the hell would you have said with so little time to think?" Ichigo barked at the hollow, drawing the old man's attention once again.

"What did you say, boy?"

Ichigo reacted in panic. "Nothing at all! I didn't say anything." He said turning back to the old man and trying on the most honest face he could come up with. Although if one would ask Ulquiorra, said "honest face" looked more like a frightened face.

"If you say so …" The old man turned around, walking back from where he came at a rather fast pace.

"I would advise you to leave this place before the old man returns. And I do believe that when he'll come, he won't be alone."

Not in the mood to argue at the moment, Ichigo opted to follow Ulquiorra's advice and leave while he still had the chance to do so.

At times he really hated his life.

* * *

Ulquiorra was not the type of person to let such trivial thing amuse him, but this time almost was almost an exception, just almost …

Seeing Kurosaki Ichigo behave like a child caught stealing a cookie from the jar was definitely not what he had expected, and in other times he would even grant himself the liberty to smile at such a scene.

He was a little surprised when the substitute shinigami followed his advice and was quite impressed when he restrained himself from attacking him once they were in the clear.

'The boy learns …' he said to himself.

He heard him mutter something about "geezers" and "stupid hollows" but he chose to ignore it. The words of commander-general Yamamoto were still too fresh to be forgotten.

"_I shall not lie to you – the situation is critical. While some might still live in Hueco Mundo, the situation in Soul Society is close to disastrous. The forth division is overcrowded and we have nether enough personal nor resources to face this situation. Worst part is that twenty of our doctors are infected as well and I fear many more will die as well if we don't do something that counts. The King has also been informed and has ordered a massive evacuation of Soul Society. This can only mean that this is way over our heads … I know that between our species there's tension and that shinigami and arrancars can't hope to work together – no matter the reason – but we now seek your aid … and we can only beg for you to help."_

For Yamamoto to actually beg for the hollow's aid was like reading something from a fantasy novel – you know that such a thing could never be, yet you see it happen right in front of your eyes. It's like the memory of a dream you found to be too real to be a dream, but that in the end remained as just a dream.

But then again, the last couple of hours seemed almost like a dream. He didn't know how he managed to vote in favor of helping the shinigami, or how he agreed to look for Kurosaki Ichigo when Byakuya-taichou asked him – be he did it so anyway. He felt too tired to protest.

With the corner of his eye, Ulquiorra caught sight of Ichigo hitting a mail box with his foot. He then chose to stop for a moment and let the younger spirit finish burning steam. Past experience with Grimmjow had taught him that was the best thing to do for the moment.

More out of habit than anything else, Ulquiorra took a look around. The streets were almost deserted of all life and there was a strange feeling floating in the air. A quiet breeze was playing with his hair and hakama and for a moment he wondered if this could be the calm before the storm.

Whatever it was, he was enjoying it. He was enjoying the still warm sun rays touch his pale skin. His eyes slowly rose to the sight of the setting sun.

It was such a long time since he last saw a sunset.

"Oi, Ulquiorra!"

Ulquiorra's green eyes instantly found Ichigo's, giving the boy the sign that he was now listening.

"Why didn't you attack me? You had the chance and you know it."

He stood corrected. 'Always thinking about fights.' The boy was more like a tamed version of Grimmjow. Tamed, but like Grimmjow nonetheless …

"I already told you that I have no intentions to fight you. I am here simply to escort you to your home."

With that he turned on his heels and started walking, ignoring the utterly shocked expression on the living boy's face. In exchange, he chose to take one last look at the sun, for he no longer knew if he will ever have the chance to see something so calming.

* * *

He didn't like it.

Ichigo had never felt so tense in his life. But then again, knowing a dangerous arrancar was walking casually alongside you could keep any soul at the ready, one certain dangerous arrancar that is.

If it was not Ulquiorra he was talking about, Ichigo would have gone as far as thanking said arrancar for pointing out that old man from earlier. But it _was _Ulquiorra he was talking about and with Ulquiorra nothing was straight forward, ever.

It was only then that he took note of how little he knew about the other. He knew he was a hollow and most certainly was once a Vasto Lorde and that he was incredibly strong and liked to calculate his moves even more then Ishida did. He also knew that, unlike the other arrancar he had fought, Ulquiorra didn't like to use force unless absolute necessary and that he was almost unbeatable at mind games (if he was to forget about Aizen, that is). But other than that, he didn't know anything else at all.

In short, Ulquiorra was a mystery for him. Always was and he knew that he would always will be.

'I must be getting rusty' thought the orange haired boy. At the time, Ichigo was so preoccupied studying Ulquiorra's moves that he failed to notice that pole he ran into.

He was definitely getting rusty.

"Being on the alert is always a good thing but not necessarily when all your attention is directed upon a single person." said the pale arrancar, not bothering to stop for Ichigo.

"Bastard …" muttered Ichigo while rubbing his nose. He needed a moment to spot Ulquiorra again, wondering in the meanwhile if the other did something he would not approve of. He was surprised to find the arrancar waiting for him at the end of the street, hands in pockets as usual.

"I sure hope you're in what humans call a "momentum faze", because otherwise it will be safe to say that we are all dead."

"Well pardon me, but walking home with an arrancar by my side doesn't make thing easy for me."

"You should have known by now that life is not always simple. But I think it is best to not expect too much of you."

Ichigo wanted to punch him so much right then and there, but he still had enough control left in him to keep his body from betraying him. Hitting air was not something worth the effort, especially when there were so many people on the streets at the time.

"Fuck you, Ulquiorra!" he said in a whisper, but he knew the other heard him. "So, why did you actually come all the way here? I'm sure your "reason" was not simply to see me home while getting on my nerves."

Ulquiorra simply watched him for a while with sad green eyes before he started moving again. He walked in silence for a few moments and Ichigo wondered if he should rephrase the question when he turned his head slightly in the substitute shinigami's direction.

"There is a crisis in Soul Society, and that includes Hueco Mundo." He started to explain, but did not stop walking. "A virus has penetrated the inter-dimensional walls of both our words and is quickly spreading in the world of the dead."

"Wait a second. Inter-dimensional walls?"

"Yes. Like the one that exist between The Living word on Soul Society. And to answer your next question: yes, there are other dimensions apart from the shinigami and hollow realms, but the entrances to most of them have been sealed a long time ago. But that is not the topic we need to focus on at the moment."

He nodded. "I remember you talking about a virus or something like that. What do you mean by that? Is it like a flu or something?"

Ulquiorra bowed his head but kept on walking.

"Not exactly … It is more similar to bone cancer if you seek something to compare it with."

"You mean to tell me you came all the way out here to talk to me about bone cancer? Well, I'll have you know that although my father owns a clinic I'm no doctor. Wouldn't a doctor help you more than I would?"

"This is no ordinary virus I speak of." Ichigo noticed a slight change in the hollow's tone. Ichigo was about to ask him another question when Ulquiorra interrupted him. "Unohana-taichou will provide you and your nakama with more answers than I ever will."

'Sly bastard' Ichigo wanted to say, but opted for: "And until then?"

"You will not have to wait long. We are to meet with her and the rest of the Gotei 13 once we shall meet with the rest of your nakama. It is dangerous to travel alone."

Ichigo scratched the back of his head his head. "I don't think I'm following you."

This time Ulquiorra did stop. Turning around, he watched Ichigo right in the eyes, making it clear that he was very serious.

"I see you do not understand the gravity of the situation. Half the shinigami population is infected and hollows are not far behind. Up until now we have neither a cure nor even a cause for all of this. The virus has been discovered less than 24 hours ago and the existence of over 5000 hollows has already been erased and if this continues not only will it lead to imbalance between the world of the living and that of the dead, but soon all that will be the least of your worries."

Ichigo's eyes went wide with both worry and confusion.

Ulquiorra could read him like an open book.

"I told you that this virus spreads quickly, and if we won't find a way to stop it, then not only the land of the dead will be destroyed, but so will the land of the living."

* * *

Ta-da! Chapter 3 complete! I fear I might have made them a bit OOC but I think the situation may be possible. Also, know that although the story already had a plot, nothing is sat in stone. So any suggestions would be welcome and might actually speed things up. So the more feedback I get, the faster I'll write – so support means constant work and new chapters for your future entertainment. In other words …** leave a review after you read!**


	4. Fugit irreparabile tempus

Well, here we have it

Well, here we have it. Chapter 4 and I must thank my good friend **Crazy laughter** once again for beta-reading. I so wish I could get better at English (especially when it comes to grammar) but I'm still so far away from the level I should be at. (and thank you for all the suggestions Henri-kun! the Unohana - Yuzu scene was just for you!)

Anyhow, I must present my thanks to everyone that left a review. I just can't believe that you actually found this interesting. I love you all! And if you think this chapter is more like a filler then you might be somewhat right, but in another way you are not. I just wanted to make clear the personalities and relations between these people at the beginning of their journey.

Also, please forgive me for the OOC-ness of some characters … but people may change will time (and some will forever have trouble when having to keep such wonderful yet hard-to-write characters seam like themselves …)

And now, without further ado … ON WITH THE STORY!

* * *

_**Fugit irreparabile tempus (The passing of time is irreversible**_

"So, let me see if I got this straight." started Ichigo, voice dangerously low. "A new virus appeared in Soul Society that has now extended all the way to Hueco Mundo. Said virus causes the victim's bones to crack, until they end up shattering and destroying the body from the inside out, victim facing a slow and agonizing death. Furthermore, the virus is spreading at such a high pace that is almost impossible for Unohana-san and Mayuri-san to come up with a cure. That is why we need to form a search party and hunt down for the so-called source of the virus and stop it from extending – if possible – preferably before Soul Society turns into a waste land. Ok, I get it now. The only thing that I don't understand … what is half of freaking Seireitei doing in my living room?!" he yelled pointing an accusing finger at the mass of people that invaded his home.

Ulquiorra sighed quietly in his corner. The boy was obviously missing the point. But at least he got the main idea.

"Kurosaki, keep your voice down if you don't want the freaking neighbors to hear ya'!" Grimmjow yelled out from where he sat on the couch, taking another waffle from the table and throwing it in his wide open mouth. "These things are really something. Have any more?"

Ignoring him, Ichigo continued voicing out his frustration. "I could live with the idea of having Rukia and I could even stand Renji … but there is no way in hell that I'll stand having all of you in here. Not in a million years!"

"Kurosaki Ichigo, I am sorry for brining such a burden on your shoulders, but at the time we have no one else to turn to." Unohana-taichou said, bowing in front of the boy. Ichigo didn't know what to do nor say anymore. The way the woman spoke made him feel terrible.

'She knows I can't say no to that … I know she does.'

As Ichigo was fighting with his guilt, Ulquiorra took the chance to look around the room.

Ishida Uryu and the Arisawa girl were both sitting on the couch along with Grimmjow, but unlike the beast they were both exaggeratedly quiet. Most likely due to the former espada's presence – it's not every day that you get to be in the same room with a former enemy that for once does not seek to eat your soul – but they still seemed too quiet. The tall boy, Chad as they called him, was standing nearby, keeping a close eye on the teal-haired espada. Urahara was sitting opposite them along with Youruichi, Tessai and the two children that work at his shop on a separate couch. Nel, who still didn't regain enough power as to keep up her adult for more than a couple of hours, was close-by, playing with a stuffed lion that if Ulquiorra didn't know better, was close to tears. And scattered all around the house were the rest of the Gotei 13 Captains and Lieutenants – with the exception of one Zaraki Kenpachi and his little pink-haired fukutaicho whose name he failed to remember.

"More muffins?" Isshin called out emerging from the kitchen, a plate of fresh, steamy muffins held up with pride in his right hand. "I have muffins here! Who wants some more home-made muffins?"

It didn't take long though to find one of them missing. Upon better inspection of his surroundings he discovered a tall teal-haired arrancar that was munching on – what he believed it was – the missing muffin.

"Grimmjow, don't you think you already had enough?" Ichigo yelled at him, snatching the remains of the muffin from his hand.

"Hey, I was here first!" said Grimmjow taking the muffin back.

Ulquiorra sighted again. 'They are nothing more than two children who forgot to grow up.' He said to himself.

Deciding that there was no need for him at the time, he took the liberty to see himself out of the house. Since he stepped foot in the Kurosaki residence he had constantly felt the eyes of all the other shinigami on his back. He couldn't blame them – it was not on only on one occasion that he was ordered to kill their friends – but that didn't mean he liked it, and he certainly didn't want to put up with this pressure longer than there was needed.

As he was moving towards the nearest exit, he took his time to examine the faces of each person he passed by. At first sight it seemed like every shinigami was simply preoccupied with their own business; chatting one with the other or simply enjoying one of Kurosaki Isshin's muffins. But his eyes knew to see beyond appearances. He could feel the hate they held for him eradiating from their bodies.

For just a moment he met eyes with Orihime Inoue, the girl he was ordered to bring to Hueco Mundo. She was staring at him with hate in her eyes, and he could not blame her. He was the one that had taken everything away from her and disintegrated her hope in her short time as "Aizen's guest". She will forever bear this hate for him, and he knew she had every right to do so. He looked away and kept on moving.

From then on he tried not to look anyone in the eyes, keep his gaze as far away from any others', but eventually he would catch a glimpse every now and then. It was almost impossible not to when so many people were gathered in such a small house. He felt no hesitation as his pale hand grabbed the door knob and he exited the house.

He was glad he was out of there.

For a moment he just stood there, slender frame supported by the wooded door and eyes closed. There was not even a breath of wind to be felt in the air and to his great surprise he could not feel any smell floating around. He was a little worried about this. Hollows didn't usually need to smell earthly living things in order to feel "alive", but for Ulquiorra, that was not the main problem. A sound of chirping and a quick shadow which flew pass him forced the melancholic former-espada open his eyes.

It was only a sparrow. Nothing uncommon, but why was it alone? From what he knew, birds rarely travel alone. That was when he noticed how quiet everything was. And that was not the only thing he found strange. Although it was summer the trees' leafs had already taken on a slightly golden color then natural, and Ulquiorra couldn't help but wonder if that was normal.

"HOONNNGGG!!"

Now this was something he was not expecting.

It had barely been a minute since he went out and a pink colored car had parked in front of the Kurosaki clinic – not without alerting whatever neighbors didn't hear the hullabaloo Ichigo and Grimmjow were making.

"How's it going, babes? Spirits are always with you!! Bohahaha– !" Ulquiorra merely blinked when a rather tall, rather inconspicuous and rather loud dark-skinned man step out of the car and yelled out strange English words as he kept his hands crossed in front of his body. Comically enough, the man somewhat reminded him of one of his former comrades, Dordonii Alessandro Del Socacchio.

But just where did all those sparkles come from?

"I have arrived, my Number 1 pupil! I, Don Kanonji, the Charismatic Spirit Medium of the New Century, have come to …"

The man suddenly stopped his chatter as his hidden eyes fell on Ulquiorra's still form. It was then that his smile faded and he took a … rather odd pose, focusing his entire attention on the shorter hollow.

"… This certainly … smells like bad spirits … !!" with that said, he pulled out a odd stick that with a girly sculpture of two wings sticking at one end and dashed at Ulquiorra.

"Here, with my super-spirit's stick, I shall finish you off with one blow!" he screamed a prepared to launch his attack. "Do not worry, little one! I'll send you to Heaven soon, baby!" But it looks like he was not used to battling strong hollows – or more evolved hallows for that matter.

'How slow …' Ulquiorra taught. But then again, he was able to see him, which meant that he did have some reiatsu to spend. Probably this was one of the people that were still to arrive at the meeting. He did say something about being a spirit medium … Still, given the circumstances it was hard for him to think of this man as anything else but trash.

"… Eh?" Don Kanonji was both surprised and impressed. Ulquiorra had grabbed hold of his staff with just one hand. Kanonji tried to get it out of the shorter one's grasp, but he couldn't even budge it, and the arrancar didn't even look like he was having any effort.

"What are you doing? I'm only trying to help you, babe!"

Ulquiorra's patience was starting to wear thin. If that man was to call him "babe" one more time…

"I would appreciate it if you would put that disgusting thing away and calm down. All this use of adrenaline can't be helpful for an aging man's health."

A vein popped up on Kanonji's forehead. Could it be that this spirit was calling him old when it could easily have thirty times his age? What insolence!

"Who are you calling old?" he but cried out, taking a nearly impossible pose … just before a loud crack was heard.

"Oh, damn lumbago …" but Kanonji stopped massaging his sore muscles in order to take another ridiculous pose. Ulquiorra resisted to the urge of rolling his eyes.

"I'll have you know I'm still under fifty, babe! And to prove it, I shall send you to heaven and you shall thank me for it! Now …" with that said, he preceded in his attempt to take his staff back from Ulquiorra. He tried pulling, pushing, he even climbed on it at a moment making Ulquiorra's eyes grow slightly with amazement. Who, he wanted to ask, could ever be this … well … childish, and be all grown-up in the same time? He immediately considered this question useless when an almost forgotten memory of Ichimaru was replayed in his mind.

This time, he couldn't resist the urge of rolling his eyes.

By this time the man that called himself Don Kanonji was already panting, leaning on his stick for support. The man that so out of the blue had attacked Ulquiorra was now – in a way – leaning on him for support. The arrancar then regretted the fact that he had promised not to harm any living soul while in the Human world. He knew such a thing was the least he could do in order to be tolerated – not accepted – by the shinigami (who at the moment formed a majority) … but why didn't he at least place some escape holes as he normally did? For the first time in a long time he was considering "going around" the agreement, and oh, if only looks could kill … but Ulquiorra had a better idea.

Stepping a little to the side, Ulquiorra checked if the older man had noticed his change of position, nothing of the sort. Then, he let go of the staff, Kanonji still leaning on it.

The man stood leaning on air for a short moment, just so he can dive head first into the wooden door. It was a wonder that said door didn't break.

"Please stay down now human. I really do not wish to get my hands dirty because of you …"

"Aha!" With a speed Ulquiorra doubted the man had, Kanonji threw some sparking dust at the arrancar, bits of it getting in the hollow's green eyes.

"Ha! My magical dust of purification has always done the trick! Mission Complete! Bohahahaha – … Eh?"

As the dust began to clear, Kanonji turned pale at the sight of the hollow still very much there, and pretty much annoyed to make things even better.

"H-how can this be? My magical dust of purification should have …" but he stopped as soon as he caught sight of those dangerous green eyes. Slowly, Kanonji began to retreat to his car. Ulquiorra on the other hand merely followed him with his eyes, giving him a glare that could freeze any man's blood within his veins.

So far so good, Ulquiorra hasn't launched any attacks yet. Taking a chance, he dared to blink and turn around to open his car. It was only then that he noticed that it was locked. He was going to die, and that coldness that came from mere centimeters away from his back was no breeze.

"Do you wish so much for me to dispose of you just as how it's needed to be done with all trash?"

The all mighty Don Kanonji then screamed like a little girl.

* * *

"Where could Zaraki-san be?" Urahara asked after he got bored of witnessing the fight between Ichigo and Grimmjow (thankfully, one that didn't get as serious as to involve a Bankai). "He should have returned a few hours ago."

"I agree." Yoroichi barked in, almost throwing her now empty bottle of sake down on the table. "We are keeping the whole meeting on stand-by because of him!"

"Didn't Zaraki-taichou go to call in Shinji-kun and Hiyori-chan?" asked Unohana, taking a slip of her tea.

"That's what he said, but I doubt those two are going to come all that willingly. After what happened during the Winter War I doubt they want to have anything to do with us, even if it is for the greater good of all." Urahara commented, hiding his face behind his fan.

"Then we should as well get started without them." Yoruichi said, taking out another bottle of sake and taking a few slips before she continues. "It's not like they are going to stop fighting any time soon … Kisuke, hand me that bottle over there. This one isn't gona' last long …" and she continued her drinking.

"Dear, I think you had enough …"

"I got you now berry-head!" yelled out Grimmjow as he delivered another punch, sending Ichigo flying over the table and into a wall.

Picking himself up, Ichigo didn't give Grimmjow a chance to put up any defense, so he dashed at him, ready to return the favor. In the meanwhile, Karin was watching the whole scene while sitting lazily on a sofa, munching on a waffle – a really bored expression on her face. As for Yuzu, well, let us say her screams fall on death ears.

"Ichi-nii-san, please stop it! You are going to ruin the furniture … Ah, not the vase!"

"Shut up, Yuzu and let them be. You know there is no way to stop a tornado from causing devastation." Karin said before taking another bite out of her waffle.

"But, Karin! We can't just let them fight! Fighting is bad and- … Karin!" Yuzu began to protest as her sister got up and started walking to the kitchen. The blond-haired girl was now resisting the urge to cry.

She did not notice the sound of a moving body wrapped in fabric behind her.

"What is it dear?" the arrival of a warm, motherly voice made her gaze turn at that of Unohana's. "Why are you crying?"

Yuzu, embarrassed of her herself, wiped out the tears of her eyes. She shouldn't have been crying, not now.

"I was not crying. I only got something in my eye, must have been an eyelash or something."

"Let me see …" Yuzu had certainly grown over the last few years, making her almost as tall as Unohana. The elder woman had no need to bend down in order to look the girl straight into the eyes. She kept her head still with the help of her right hand in order to fully study the so-called "cause" of her tears, but noticing none she knew that the girl had lied to her.

Yet she didn't want to point that out quite so bluntly. The one in front of her was still a child after all.

"Well, I see no eyelash or anything else for that matter. Maybe you got it when you were rubbing your eyes."

Yuzu needed a moment to think up a line. "Yes, yes, I think I did. I don't feel anything anymore."

Yuzu had met Unohana only a couple of times in her whole life, but she already liked the woman a lot. She was kind and loving and sweet and so much like her mother … Yuzu missed her mother. Ever since she had died she was the one that took up that role, the role of a mother for everyone … but she failed to find someone that could be a mother for her.

"There is something else, isn't there Yuzu-chan?" said girl was a bit surprised to hear her name coming from those perfect lips. That taught alone stopped her from denying it, but didn't stop her from choosing not to tell her real problem.

"I'm just a little angry with dad. Now a few days ago we had a special lesson on the reproductive organs… and he stopped me and Karin from going. I didn't think much of it for some time – dad always had his quirks, but all the girls in my class know and I feel left out. And whenever I ask them about it they blush red and change the topic. And even though he is a doctor he won't tell me …" she looked into Unohana's big calm eyes. "You don't believe me, do you?"

"There is something bothering you, isn't there, Kurosaki Yuzu?"

Sometimes her mother asked her the same question. Whenever she knew there was something on her mind, even if she had no evidence of her daughter's misfortune – she always knew when something was bothering her or her siblings.

"It's just … I don't understand. Why can't Ichi-nii be more social with others? Why must he always fight?" she asked the older shinigami with pleading eyes. She loved her brother and she knew him better than most, but despite all that she failed to understand him.

"Why Unohana-san? Why does Ichi-nii always fight?"

For just a moment Unohana was not sure if she knew the proper words for this sort of an explanation, but then she realized that any words could be better than no words at all.

"Yuzu-chan, why do you think your brother fights?"

"Huh?" she asked, hiding a sniff. "What do you mean, Unohana-san?"

"I am asking you why _you_ think your brother picks on fights" she slightly repressed the question. "I am sure you have some ideas of your own by now."

"A few, but none of them make sense." Unohana sat on the sofa Karin had just left vacant and motioned for young Yuzu to join her. A little shyly, Yuzu did as asked, eyes cast down in order to avoid the image of her brother throwing a chair at the teal-haired arrancar.

"Tell me one thing" Unohana asked of her, watching the scene of the fight with semi-closed eyes.

"Well, I once thought that … No. It can't be just that."

"Do not be shy." Unohana encouraged her, rubbing her back at the same time. Yuzu blushed a little at the motherly act. She could vaguely remember her mother doing the same thing whenever she knew there was something bothering her little girl.

"I – I was thinking that maybe he… does it so he can… prove that he isn't weak…?" For an unknown reason she couldn't remember anything of what she was planning to say, so she just fabricated something on the spot.

"I'm not completely sure that's what it is." Unohana said after examining the image in front of her. "I do not pretend to know Kurosaki-kun as well as you do, but I do think that that is not the reason he fights." She paused to look at Yuzu, a motherly smile now dancing on the female shinigami's visage. "I think that he does it in order to protect."

"Protect?"

"Yes. You see, when he first came to Seireitei he fought in order to protect Rukia-chan. When he was fighting hollows on earth he did it in order to protect the ones he knew could not protect themselves. When he traveled to Huenco Mundo he fought so he could protect Inoue-san. And during the War and everything that followed I think the only reason he fought was so he could protect his friends and family" she paused, then "So he could protect you."

Yuzu knew no words to express her feelings at the moment. Her brother was fighting so he could protect her? She never thought of that… or did she? Talking with Unohana so close to her made the blond girl feel all confused and light-hearted at the same time. Could this be the feeling all girls had whenever they talk with their mother?

"Did it help?" Unohana asked, bringing the girl back to reality.

"Y-yes, it did Unohana-san!" she said merrily. "Thank you ever so much!"

"You are welcome, dear. And please don't hesitate to ask me for help whenever you're at a dead end. I'll never think any less of you." She them gave her a reassuring smile, proof enough that she was not just saying that.

"Really, Unohana-san? Anything at all?"

"Sure thing" and then she leaned in to whisper. "I wouldn't even mind discussing with you about what you actually missed in that class and exactly why your father didn't want you to go …"

"Ah? Really? Please tell me, Unohana-san! Will we have time for it?" Yuzu chirped away, now jumping on the sofa with delight. It was clear she had no idea what Unohana was talking about.

"Of course we will. Now, what do you want to know?"

"Everything! And I also want to know why all the boys have started to look at us all of a sudden." She was happy to hear the shinigami laugh.

"Well, you see, it's like this …"

And while Unohana began her explanation, Kurosaki Isshin began crying, forced to be witness to one of his daughter's last moments of complete innocence.

"My baby … Yuzu …" he stated sniffing and started soaking the carpet underneath him, right before running over to the poster of his dead wife and crying out so that the whole house could hear. "Mother, our little girl is going to enter forbidden territory! No matter how much I tried to keep her away from it all it still happened. Mother …. What should I do?"

"You do know we were supposed to have learned all about this in sex-ed (the class we were forced to miss because you kept us locked in our room)?" that being said, Karin returned to her glass of milk, ignoring the pathetic whimpers of her father.

"What the hell's the matter with him?" Grimmjow asked, chair still in hand and eyes now focused on the pathetic image displaying right in front of him.

"That's a loooooong story …" Ichigo answered as he inspected the vase in his hand.

"Anyway, let's get back to where we left off …"

He was interrupted by a loud bang at the door. "Sorry, we are closed for renovation!" Ichigo screamed from where he stood then shot his attention back to the arrancar. But before returning to the fight, he thought that it was pretty strange to hear just one bang …

They didn't even have enough time to land a single punch before a loud girly scream came from outside.

In just two seconds Ichigo opened the front door. He did not want to believe that he was actually witnessing the sight in front of him…

"Please forgive me! I promise I shall never raise my fist against you ever again! Please don't kill me! Please merciful spirit, have mercy on my soul!" and the list of pleas and begs just kept going on.

Don Kanonji was on the ground, bowing down in flash-style at one (or so Ichigo supposed) annoyed Ulquiorra.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, are you by any chance acquaintances with this trash?" asked Ulquiorra, watching Ichigo from the corner of his eye. The orange-haired boy watched Ulquiorra for a moment; then he looked at Kanonji.

"My Number One pupil! I have missed you so… You have come to save your master!" he said in his usual sing-along tone, opening his arms as if he was expecting the substitute shinigami to jump into them.

Ichigo did not need a lot of time to answer. "… No" he stated simply, and when Ulquiorra's gaze returned to Kanonji the later began to really panic.

"What are you saying, boy? Don't leave me like this!"

Why wasn't he carrying a camera?

"Please, my Number One pupil, save you master from the clutches of this evil monster!"

And just why did he feel the need to punch the Negro so much?

"Shut up already you obsessed transvestite!"

"I am not a transvestite, boy. I am merely up-to-date with the latest styles in fashion!"

Ulquiorra decided to remain quiet for a while. Although he knew Kurosaki Ichigo was never going to admit this out loud, Ulquiorra knew this was the type of life he chose to have. Along with even its ups and downs, it was forming to be a way of life.

He knew, more than most, that the time that has been given to each individual was limited and that the second that has passed shall never return. The passing of time is irreversible as the Romans used to say. Each moment was made for that exact moment, and even though he did not completely approve with the way most spent their own, he admired the fact that they had a reason for spending it.

His thoughts however have been immediately stopped when he had sensed three slightly familiar reiatsus coming towards them, at a very high speed.

"What is that?" Ichigo asked, stopping the screams meant for Kanonji.

Ulquiorra did not answer for he knew the answer shall appear soon enough in the form of one pink-haired fukutaicho and two known visoreds, namely Shinji Hirako and Hiyori Sarugaki.

He was not wrong.

"We have a problem …" was what the female visored said as soon as they have entered the front gate. "A hollow and two shinigami have been found dead … in the human world."

Though her voice was not as loud as it usually was, the message could be heard by every occupant of the house. Yes, the passing of time was irreversible, and that was a reason for everyone to worry.

* * *

And cut! I think I should change my pen-name to "cliffhanger queen" because I almost always tend my readers with millions of questions running threw their minds. But next chapter will compensate, and the one after that and all the way till the ending.

I'm starting to feel sorry for robbing Yuzu of her innocence … but it was bound to happen sooner ore later. At least it should happen by means of a professional … and what better person could there be in the Bleach universe then Unohana (who even thinks of Noitora should fear Ichigo's Bankai, Karin's soccer ball as well as Isshin's punch of doom). And as for Don Kanonji … I just couldn't resist! (plus the idea has been aging and screaming in my head for moths) And you have to admit that he is not seen in fanfiction too often … and certainly not in anything not humor or comedy strictly related.

Well, that said, I'll promise to have quicker updates if you'll just click that little button down there that says "Go". Come one now, I know you want to!


	5. Hannibal ad portas

HAPPY NEY YEAR, PEOPLE!!! I know, I must be nuts to update on the last day of the year. But who cares? I had a lot of fun, writing this, I thank my dear friend Crazy Laughter for beta-reading this and that being said, onwards mates! It's time for reading!

(oh, and you should be warned, this chapter is a bit more spooky then the ones I usually do. Also, an apologies for eventual OOC-ness … but there is a reason for everything!)

* * *

**_Hannibal_****_ ad portas (Hannibal before the gates)_**

"The fuck with everything!"

Grimmjow Jagarjaques was not a man to accept being left behind. In all honesty, he would rather have a liver transplant then having to stay out of something he knew to be good.

He didn't even know the one the others called Urahara, but right now, he hated the man. Like, who was he to tell him that he couldn't go? It wasn't fair! From what he knew nobody named him the boss of everything and anyone, so what was the big idea? Why could Ulquiorra go and not him? That's why he was now pissed, because he didn't have it his way.

"Why the hell does Ulquiorra get all the good jobs? He always gets the good jobs!" he spat out to no-one in particular and started chewing on another muffin. "These things really are good …"

Nel was at a certain distance away from him, watching a box filled with cute moving pictures Ichigo called cartoons with fascination. She took a special liking in one particular character named Kyoro-chan, one of the cutest birds she had ever seen. At that moment, the rest of the world was invisible for her.

"Maybe because unlike some other people I know …" Yoruichi said as she walked by him. "… He is actually able to control himself and not give into what some would call 'one's animal urges'."

At that remark, the teal-haired ex-espada nearly choked on his muffin. She eyed her with a glare so cold it could even that of Ulquiorra – almost. "What the hell were you implying, cat-face?"

Yoruichi liked to be teased, she enjoyed arguing, but at the same time she was a pacifist. It was not really in her character to pick fights, but nobody insulted her like that and got away with it. If he wanted a catfight, he's going to get a catfight.

"Only that you, kitty, are nothing more but an uncontrollable brute with the IQ of a chicken."

It was not hard to imagine what that could lead to.

"That is it, cat lady! You are gonna get it now!"

And so the table lost a leg, two chairs became unusable; Ikkaku found a reason to get into a fight and Isshin was worried because of the redecorator's bill.

"NO! Stop, please! If you really want to fight then please – "

Nel turned up the volume.

"Cero!"

And with that one of the four walls of the room came down, covering the people in it in a thick layer of white dust. Isshin did not want to think of the bill he will be forced to pay … again.

"… take it outside …" was all Isshin was able to say at the sight of his missing wall

Nel just dusted the screen for a better view.

* * *

"You are late" Those were the first words that have come out of Ishida Ryuken's mouth the moment the group formed out of two humans, four shinigami, three visoreds (one of which was also counting as a substitute shinigami) and one arrancar had finally arrived at the Karakura Town Hospital.

"Why-why, my dear Ishida-san, I was not aware of the fact that we were expected" said Urahara in his usual merry tone.

Ishida's father, on the other hand, was not amused.

"I can assure you it gives me no pleasure to know of your presence in my hospital, but given the circumstances …" he did not finish his sentence as his eyes fell on the form of his only son, standing next to the orange-haired boy he knew Uryu had assisted in the rescue of Inoue Orihime now two years ago – without his approval of course.

"The two you sent along with Zaraki-taichou's foutachou said something about finding a few more bodies, am I correct?" asked the captain of the twelfth division, speaking as if the people he had mentioned were not in the same room with him. He either was not aware or chose to ignore the hard stares he was receiving.

Ryuken watched the shinigami with ice-cold eyes. The look on his face made it clear that he would rather spend all eternity in the hollow's realm then answer to him, but as most of the persons present knew, now was not the time for arguments.

"Indeed I have …" he finally admitted and turned on his heels. "Please follow me" he said, not bothering to check if the others were actually doing as instructed.

But they were, each in their own way, yet in the same time all in silence - Orihime especially.

It was the first time in two years since she had ever been asked to actually help, and that made her stomach turn. She would often dream of what she could do for them, how she could show them her value and just try to imagine how it is to actually feel needed, but for a alien reason for her, she couldn't figure out why she felt so … useless.

Useless …

The memory of her days in Hueco Mundo came back to her without delay. She could remember how it felt to be useless, how it was to know that all she ever really managed to do was put everyone's life in danger, and most of all, she remembered how weak and small she felt there, surrounded by the enemy, all alone with no one to speak to, except for the only arrancar in all of Las Noches that tried not to harm her – her caretaker, Ulquiorra Schiffer.

How she hated him back then.

She did not know why Aizen had placed her under his care, yet for the last two years she tried to figure it out. Maybe it was because of his lack of emotions. She once had a thought that maybe Aizen asked him because he knew the espada will never take pity on her, nor will he ever reach the point of complete annoyance and thus will never be too tempted to kill her. She tried talking to him a couple of times, he would sometimes answer, but each time she feared that he will find in her questions a reason to kill her. Out of all the espada, he was the only one she ever really feared. It was not that he ever done anything to actually earn this fear from her, it was simply the way he was as a man, and as a hollow.

She watched him from the corner of her eye as he walked behind the group, hands in pockets as always. He hasn't changed at all.

Yes, she could remember hating him, despising him when he would crush her hopes, when he would mess with her mind, when he would insult his friends, but hen why …

"These are the three bodies we have so far" Said Ishida's father.

"They indeed present the same signs like the ones from Soul Society. What do you think Kurotsuchi-taichou?" Unohana's ever so calm voice said.

"Correct. Though I do admit these specimens are a bit strange. Normally the skin doesn't get this hard. Where did you say that you found them?"

"Not far from here. Zaraki can show you that later." Ryuuken courtly answered.

Orihime then made an effort to get out of her pool of memories. She saw most her companions gathered around an operating table or so it looked. She was not used to medical terms.

She noticed when Urahara pulled Hiyori by the end of her t-shirt and how Ichigo turned away from the sight. The boy looked sick.

"It is not a pretty sight, Inoue-san. I don't think you'd like to see it." The calm and calculated voice of Ishida Uryu told her from where he stood, at a somewhat safe difference from the others. She was not sure, but the look on his face could have been one of disgust.

What was it that they all saw that was so disgusting?

"I'll be covering this now. It was hard enough to reserve this room for the evening. I don't want to make up any other unnecessary explanations." Ishida senior said right before he threw a white sheet over the thing that had captivated the other's attention.

"I was planning on making the autopsy myself, but I guess there is not much to be done now …" said Kurotsuchi-taichou as he scratched the back of his head in disappointment. "These were not at all like the ones we had in Soul Society …"

"Next time I'll leave all the honors to you. Now, if you will follow me, I shall show you what I have found out up until now."

Without another word, he started waking again, leading the others into another room. Orihime was starting to see where his son got all his wonderful traits.

By the time her brain's message finally got to her legs, the others had already moved on without her. She didn't want to be left behind.

But then she felt it.

Just as she was thinking of running after them, she felt this cold chill run down her spine. Her feet stopped moving without her command and she could see. She suddenly felt cold, really cold, and so scared… so very scared.

No! She could not bring herself to be so weak again. Never again! There must be a logical explanation for all of this. Maybe the air conditioner got broken or something. Yes, that must be it. There was no reason for her to feel insecure, right?

She looked around the room to convince herself. Just as she expected, there was nobody there, just three covered tables.

'See, Orihime? There is nobody here. It's just your imagination getting the better of you.'

With that thought it mind, she let out a sigh of relief. There really was no reason for her to worry.

She mentally applauded herself. She was not as weak as most thought her to be, so she had no reason to feel afraid. In fact, she could bet her last yen that she could prove Ishida-kun wrong and stand whatever was under those sheets even better than most. Couldn't she? Her eyes then fell on the covered form on the table. Ishida-kun advised her not to look at it, Urahara tried to keep Hiyori-san away from it and Ichigo actually looked ill from it all. What could be under that sheet?

It couldn't hurt if she was to simply take a peak.

She listened carefully for the sound of footsteps to see if the others were close by. She could still hear their voices, but they all seemed so far away. That must have meant the coast was clear. Slow and steady, she approached the table.

She could still feel the cold on her back and her breathing still formed white little clouds in the air coming out of her mouth. She felt like she was doing something wrong, but she _was not _doing anything wrong. She was just curious, and that was not a crime.

'Curiosity killed the cat, Orihime' that little voice from the back of her head tried to warn her, but Orihime kept telling herself that she was not a cat. Still, her heart started racing, faster, and faster, then louder, until the beating of her heart sounded like a drum.

Her hand started to shake when she touched the sheet, her heart was beating with no control any more, and despite the cold of the room, sweat starting forming on her forehead. She held her breath and swallowed. It was now or never.

"What are you doing, woman?" A calm voice asked behind her.

Orihime jumped, forgetting that she was not supposed to scream. She almost lost her balance at that point, but caught herself when she felt gravity take its effect on her.

"U- Ulquiorra-san? W-what are you doing here?" Orihime asked and tried to stop her heart from jumping out of her chest.

There was no change in his tone when he answered her. "I have noticed your absence and came to look for you."

To say she was surprised to hear that coming from him was the understatement of the century. He looked the same as back in Hueco Mundo, his tone hasn't changed at all, but somehow she couldn't figure out why those words didn't sound "Ulquiorra-like" to her.

"What are you doing here, woman?"

But then again, maybe she could believe it. After all, it was enough just to remember.

"Firstly, I have a name. It's Inoue Orihime. Can you remember that? Inoue Orihime. Repeat with me: I-no-u-e O-ri-hi-me."

She was answered by silence. Ulquiorra gave her one of those "keep talking and die" stares.

"O-ok then … and … secondly, you are not my boss anymore, so I can do whatever I want. And right now, I want to look at this!" she finally managed to say it, a little louder then she intended. But maybe that way he might fail to notice how nervous she really was. She knew this man could rip her to shreds with the utmost of ease, so she hoped she wasn't forcing her luck.

Ulquiorra simply looked at her slightly trembling form, and eventually to the sheets she still was pointing at. He just closed his eyes and turned away from her.

"Do as you wish…" He said in a slightly bored tone.

Now that was something she wasn't expecting. Orihime would have suspected something more of a fight. It was hard for her to believe that this was actually the same man that treated her like garbage a few years ago.

She looked at his back for a few moments before getting enough nerves to stick her tongue out at him then turned back to the task at hand.

She hesitated when she reached for the end of the sheet.

It was back – that feeling of uneasiness… and the cold. She could once again see the white clouds forming as she breathed, but tried to ignore it.

She looked over at Ulquiorra again. From what she could see, he hadn't moved a muscle.

She pouted and turned back to the sheet.

Bringing back her courage, she finally grabbed onto the sheet and slowly lifted it up. Her eyes met the sight of a hand, a very dead hand.

The skin was dark, but not like Chad's. It looked burned, a very dark brown or blue –she couldn't tell. Crack could be seen on it, making it hard for her to believe that this was once a living creature. The sight was not something particularly disturbing, but the smell – that specific smell of death made her stomach turn. She felt her stomach turn and a wave of nausea overtook her.

She felt sick, so she turned away. It was then that she noticed that Ulquiorra was looking at her with what she taught was interest.

"W-what are you looking at?" she tried to ask, but he just kept on looking at her with his unblinking eyes and back half turned at her.

She felt uncomfortable.

Perfectly aware of the blush that has crept to her cheeks, Orihime just moved to cover the hand.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Suddenly, the hand came to life, clutching her right hand. Orihime could feel pain of her skin burning where the hand held her. She tried to shake it off, she tried pulling away with all her might, but it just wouldn't let go. Strong yet fragile arms tried to pull her way, and for a second, she taught that she would be torn in half.

The sensation didn't last long, for the next moment she found herself falling to the floor. She mentally prepared herself for the impact, but to her surprise, she found that she had landed on something soft, and surprisingly warm.

"U-Ulquiorra-san?"

* * *

"Did you hear that?" Ichigo asked out loud when the sound of something he presumed was a scream made its way to his ears.

Rukia was the only one to take notice of his question. "Hear what, Ichigo?"

"I thought I heard someone scream? It sounded like Inoue."

"Speaking of which, where is Inoue-san?" Ishida asked himself. Nobody has seen the redhead for quite a while and from past experience that wasn't a good thing. But she was not the only one that was missing, as Chad made sure to point out.

"The arrancar is missing too. You think he's with her?"

Before anyone was able to say another word, Ichigo was already in his spirit form, running back the way they came. This wasn't good.

* * *

Orihime could not believe what was happening. How could the hand of a dead man suddenly come to life, grab her and by just that burn her hand. But then again, she had seen stranger things - like how her former caretaker pulled her away, and how she actually landed _on him_. Could this day be any stranger?

"What's just happened?" she asked the air around her as if to find the confirmation that this was simply one of her strange dreams. If so, she would never ever eat strawberries dipped in mayonnaise before going to bed again.

Just as she finished that last thought, she felt Ulquiorra gently trying to make way from underneath her. When he was finally on his feet, he slowly came closer to the body on the table, and in one smooth motion, took the sheet off it.

"Oh my God …" was all that Orihime could mutter at the sight in front of her. Instead of a body, there was something that looked like sand, and crushed glass and maybe even dust from the way bits of it was floating in the air. As bits from the strange mixture fell off the table and onto the floor, Orihime could feel the coldness return in the room and tried to hold herself tight to stop her trembling.

She failed to notice the fog that started to form around her till Ulquiorra pulled her off the ground and on her feet, ignoring her yell of surprise as he did so.

"Ulquiorra-san, what happened to him?"

She was not sure he knew but she just felt the need to ask – someone, anyone, just to reassure herself that she wasn't alone.

"I'm … not sure …" he cautiously moved closer to what was once a shinigami, but was not able to observe anything besides the obvious, except for that strong smell of death. It got stuck in his lungs and made it hard to breath, forcing him to back away while keeping a hand on his mouth. The smell made him sick.

Though she knew a pile of dust couldn't harm her, Orihime couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen.

She could hear the sound of moving fabric behind her and immediately her heart began to beat at an accelerate rate. Without moving her head, she tried to eye Ulquiorra. From what she could see, he looked a little tense as well. She saw him reach for his sword and had to do a lot of effort to keep herself from yelping, for this was most certainly wasn't the time.

But as strong as she wanted to be, she couldn't hold on any more when she felt something move around her feet. In panic, she started yelling and jumped so suddenly it even took the arrancar that was with her by surprise. When her feet reached the ground once again, her knees buckled from both fright and force. Losing her balance, she fell on Ulquiorra who, although a bit surprised, was able to hold her from touching the ground.

At least, for a moment, for in this moment of temporary distraction he wasn't able to feel the shadow that crept behind him.

"Ulquiorra-san! Behind you!" Orihime tried to warn him, but it was too late, for just as she voiced the words a large, strong hand griped the pale man's neck, almost crushing it on the spot.

"Ulquiorra-san!" Orihime yelled out in terror when he saw him struggle for air. The one that held him then noticed her and, though deformed, Orihime recognized him. It was a shinigami from the 11th Division, the one that tried to win her over the first time she ever went to Soul Society. But still, that look in his eyes – no, there were no more eyes. There were just holes, big black holes that still were filled with dried up blood … and he was coming closer to her.

His skin no longer had the healthy color of peach, but it was more similar to that of a tree bark, in more ways than one. Deep cuts, or was that cracks could be seen all over his body, as for his hair … she never knew one's hair could turn white at such an age – even for a shinigami.

She started to panic. She couldn't breathe properly and her vision was unfocused. She tried to speak, to call on Tsubaki, but the words wouldn't come out. "Z-zoten … ki-ki …Zo-zo-ten …"

"Cero!"

Before Orihime was able to understand exactly what was going on, she was forced to witness as the one that held Ulquiorra by the throat broke – literally broke apart like a piece of glass.

The sound of painful coughs filled the room, and Orihime was free from the trance she seemed to have fallen into. Searching the room with her eyes, she found Ulquiorra's frail form curled into a fatal position. He looked like he was in pain and the hard coughs that came out of his mouth only managed to worry her even more. Seeing him in such a state made her forget about what happened in the past. Tatsuki did tell her she was too kind.

In only a matter of seconds she was at his side, rubbing smoothing circles on his back.

"Ulquiorra-san? Are you alright?" she asked him with concern. He did not answer her question and she could understand him. In fact, Orihime was almost sure he didn't even hear her. But why didn't he try to free himself sooner? She knew for a fact that Ulquiorra was a strong person, so it should have been easy for him to take care of … could that thing be called a zombie? That was when she saw the burn.

Careful not to touch the now reddish skin, she brushed a few strands of raven-black hair out of the say so she could get a better look. The zombie's hand had burned his skin right threw the fabric of his uniform. It pained her to look at it.

"Shoten kisuren! Ayame, Shun'ou, I reject!" now calm enough to speak properly, she called on her healing fairies. Ulquiorra may have been mean to her and sometimes … well, most of the times – treated her like trash, but she wanted to help him. But you could shoot her down at the spot if she had any reason as for why.

This time, she was too preoccupied to notice the coldness in the air.

She never got to see the golden shield form around him for a hand came out of nowhere and cached Shun'ou in its grasp as she was still in mid-air. The fairy was crushed into pieces.

"Shun'ou!" Orihime cried, her frightened tone warning Ulquiorra of the danger they were now in.

The best was a little different than the others. True, its hair was still white, had no more eyes and along its huge body one could see hundred of cracks, bits of sand and dust falling from some of them, but there was something different about it all the same. Its skin was white; opposite to the earthly color of the other two's. Remains of a broken hollow mask were still visible on its face, meaning this poor creature was once a hollow, but strangely enough the hollow hole was nowhere visible on the body.

Almost immediately, the arrancar was on his feet, pushing the frozen Orihime behind him.

For a moment, the creature looked at its hand and at the sparkling dust that was once the healing fairy Shun'ou, just before it turned its non-existing eyes on the two in front of it. It stretched its hand to them, and Ulquiorra concentrated his spiritual energy to the tip of his finger to form another cero. Simply terrified, Orihime grabbed onto the arrancar's uniform.

"_P-periculosus … tui … mundus … est …"_ it said all out of the blue, momentarily shocking the two of the room. The creature looked like it was in a lot of pain, simply talking bringing him closer to death. But, wasn't it supposed to be dead in the first place?!

"W-what … is he? …" Orihime tried to ask from behind her former caretaker. To her, it looked like Ulquiorra understood what the creature was saying. It sounded like Italian, or maybe Spanish, but since all she knew of those languages came from old movies that had subtitles from the beginning … she really couldn't tell.

"_H-Hannibal … ad … p-portas …"_ it said again, in the same strange language as before. Ulquiorra discretely gave her the sign to retreat, a request (or was it order) she was more than happy to comply to. But then the creature started moving towards them, and Orihime started to cry.

"Why is this happening … Ulquiorra-san, what does it want?"

She never expected him to answer. She was used to him like that. No, she didn't expect him to answer, but did she expect him to protect her? He always protected her in Hueco Mundo, but did she really expect him to protect her right now? Without Aizen's orders? But then why was he there, with her, right then? Why did he come looking for her? Why didn't he sense those things? Why said things, that were supposed to be just corpses in a morgue, suddenly come to life, and why did they look like so much like some burned dolls? And why in Heaven's name was she thinking of so many useless questions when she should be running, or screaming, or doing … something?! Why, for the love of God, did her body just, freeze?

"Woman, now is not the time to freeze." And just like that, her mind finally took control over the body once more, because for some reason, Ulquiorra's calm voice seamed to reassure her in some way. "Be calm. Now, you slowly back away and head for the door. Do you understand? Or are you too scared to do even that?" His words offended her, but the fire in her eyes was back along with her will to fight – just as Ulquiorra planned. "Good. Now, do it."

She took a few steps towards the door, now armed with a new sort of determination. She wanted to show the arrancar that she was not a coward; that she was strong and deserved the respect. She was only a few steps away from the door and freedom till it happened again. Her left leg refused to budge and she knew why. She couldn't let Ulquiorra alone with that thing. Sure, he said it was only a doll and she knew what he meant by that. She's been fighting with supernatural creatures for the longest of times and she would be the dumbest girl on the planet if she wouldn't know by now what a "doll" was and that someone was a controlling it, like a puppeteer controlling his marionettes. But still, this doll was a strong doll, as the other two had proven. But they just had the element of surprise on their side and Ulquiorra did finish that one with just one cero and that one looked even stronger than this one so –

"_Search … the fog …" _

And with those last words, the creature fell face-forward on the floor, breaking into millions of pieces.

Orihime screamed only once, before she started to cough. "What in the – _cough_ – world – _cough_ – is that smell? – _cough_"

"Don't breathe it in!" Ulquiorra told her, though to her ears, it sounded more like an order. Maybe it was only her, but maybe, just maybe, he said that a little too fast

"Why?" she asked, although she did started to breath threw her sleeve.

"Just don't" he answered using an annoyed tone. She would have shot a few more words at him, but then she saw him put a hand on his burn. As she looked at her own burn, the look in her eyes softened, and she cursed herself for letting Shun'ou meet the same fate as Tsubaki once did. She didn't know if she could heal using only Ayame But even if she could … how was she going to find the pieces in this mess?

"What the hell happened in here?!"

Just like in the movies – the reinforcements arrive just when everything's over. Ichigo was there, Zangetsu in hand and ready for combat. He looked around the room, simply dumb-struck, then at the two living (or at least one of them) beings in the room. That was when he toticed Orihime's burn.

"What did you do to her?" he asked the pale arrancar with murderous intent shining in his eyes. "I knew I had good reasons not to trust you! And here's the living proof of it all! Before I send your emo ass back to the after world tell me one thing … why did you half destroy the room and why are you holding your neck?" Ulquiorra sighted and Orihime sweat-dropped. Was Ichigo THAT blind?

She couldn't bear this. Sure, Orihime didn't like Ulquiorra. He was mean to her and treated her like garbage. Why, he still treated her like garbage … ok, maybe not really as bad as before, but still, he did nothing to be blamed for all of this. If anyone (still existing) was to blame, then that should have been her for staying behind in the first place. So, as the nice person she was, she did the only thing she could: she interfered. "Kurosaki-kun! Hold on a second!" Before Ichigo could tell why his Zanpakutō was now aimed at the wrong person, Orihime continued. "Ulquiorra-san did nothing to me. In fact, he protected me!"

"Protected you?" Ichigo asked. Ulquiorra felt the need to roll his eyes again.

"Yes. You see, I stood behind a little because I wanted to see the bodies but then this strange coldness fell over the room and then Ulquiorra came to check on me, just like when we were back in Las Noches. You know, he used to check on me a lot you know, to see if I ate my dinner, or if I'm sleeping well, or if I would try to cut my wrists because I fell in depression, you know, those sorts of things. Well, then I was like, 'I am not leaving till I see this body' and then the hand shot from under the sheets and then I was like 'AAAHHHHHH' because it burned my hand. You see, right here! But then Ulquiorra pulled me away and the arm disintegrated but then the coldness came back and it was so scary. Just like in a horror movie. You know, when the zombies come from their grave to eat your brain, or like when there's a killer on the loose in a stormy night or even when you're home all alone and the light go out. Or how about – "

"Woman!" Ulquiorra stopped her before she could utter another word. Muttering a small "yes" she turned to the shorter of the two males. "Cease your rant before you traumatize your friend."

It was only then that Orihime noticed how pale Ichigo was looking. It was a… really interesting sight.

"Hehehe… Sorry, Kurosaki-kun. I think I started rambling, didn't I?" Orihime said while scratching the back of her head and laughing nervously. This time, Ulquiorra did roll his eyes.

"What I wanted to say, Kurosaki-kun, was that those … corpses you and the others were looking at came to life all of the sudden and tried to kill us! They were like zombies!"

Ichigo found that very hard to believe. "Inoue, are you sure you didn't hit your head on something? I mean, if they came back to life, then we would have felt them. In case you haven't noticed, there wasn't any change in the local spiritual pressure."

"They didn't have spiritual pressure!" Orihime yelled out, surprising even herself. But how would you react if you were attacked by zombies and nobody would believe you. "There were zombies!"

"Inoue…"

"What the woman tries to say is that they were, indeed, dead, and since they no longer had a life of their own, they had no reiatsu of their own. That was why nobody could have expected them to still be able to move. It is also the reason why I didn't sense them until it was too late…" That last part sounded almost like an apology in Orihime's point of view. It was… not like what she was used to.

"In that case, where are the corpses if what you two said is true?"

"If you are to ask me, they are scrambled all over the floor." There was no mistaking that cheerful voice. "I say, Kurosaki-san, you run faster than last time you trained with me, but I can see your mind is still a little slow in some matters." Urahara said with no restraints, while Ishida, who arrived at the scene along with the ex-shinigami and the rest of the troop was holding his orange-haired friend from strangling the man.

Ignoring him, Urahara turned to Orihime with a concerned look on his face. "Oh my dear, Inoue-san, that looks like a very nasty burn. You better have it treated right away, before it gets infected."

Orihime looked at her hand and at the burn. It still singed a little, but it didn't hurt anymore. "I'm fine, Urahara-san, really I am. I can't even feel it any more. But I think Unohana-san should look at Ulquiorra-san's burn. It looks more serious than mine." Urahara raised an eyebrow, for more than one reason.

"Is that so?" he shifted his attention to the ex-espada. He saw what Orihime meant. "Well in that case, its best we take you two to be treated. After that, we'll ask you both a few questions. Hopefully, we'll get one step closer to figuring this puzzle out. Now, I leave you in the care of Unohana-san's professional hands."

Seeing the looks on their faces, Unohana got their attention by lacing her hand on their shoulders. "Come with me you two." She said in a motherly tone, and signaled them to follow her. Both Ulquiorra and Orihime looked at each other before they went after the captain of the 4th Division.

While they walked, Orihime pondered over the only thing that she could not figure out. She knew Ulquiorra was strong, stronger then Ichigo at times. She also knew he wasn't the type to be frightened by anything, so why didn't he free himself faster? Why didn't he fight back until his burn became so serious? She had no way to know that if he was to move any faster, she would have been caught in the crossfire. She had no way to know that all this time he had protected her. Why? Not even Ulquiorra himself knew

Not long after they had left, about the time when Urahara and Mayuri were collecting "dust" samples, Ichigo noticed something floating around his legs. It looked like smoke, or even steam, or probably even fog. He didn't know and didn't really care, but his hollow was wreaking havoc up in his inner world, screaming and yelling for him to move his ass, so he took it as his sue to stay away. Indeed, his hollow didn't like that thing at all – whatever that thing was.

* * *

I said it was a little creepier then usual, didn't I? Well, it's my first time writing something like this. Hope I got it right.

Well, since I honestly have no idea what else to say, I'll just wish you a HAPPY NEW YEAR and god fortune to you all!

Now, just go down and hit that little button over there that says "review" and maybe I'll update a little faster ;D


	6. Durante minore aetate

Kill me if that is what you wish … but I will still say .. GOMEN NASAI!!! I am so sorry for keeping you hanging so long! I am a bad author!

And while you are killing me … take your time and read the actual story ~

Happy reading ^^

* * *

_**Durante minore aetate (While one is young)**_

Dust, it was nothing but dust. But at the same time, it was strange. It looked like glass, but it wasn't glass. It felt like sand, though it wasn't sand. It smelled like bones, but that was probably because they were once bones. But now it was nothing but dust. Nothing more than dust…

"I must admit, this is one of the strangest things I have ever seen in my entire life. And I dare say that I _have_ seen a lot of strange things in my life. This is even stranger than some of the things that I _made _and that's saying a lot. What do you think, Kisuke?"

… but a very strange kind of dust indeed.

For a number of minutes now, both Urahara Kisuke and Kurotsuchi Mayuri had been examining the remains of the two shinigami and one hollow that had so miraculously come to life and attempted to kill two members of their group.

The captain of the 12th Division was simply fascinated by the phenomena. In all his years he had never stumbled upon something so… interesting. Kurotsuchi Mayuri was definitely looking forward to the further investigation of this strange substance. His predecessor on the other hand, did not look as trilled.

Urahara Kisuke was worried. Just like his comrade, he himself has never seen something quite like this, but unlike his comrade, he was not interested in whatever was lying at his feet out of sheer curiosity. He was interested in it because he knew that one day, and one day very soon, he too could end up being just that: dust.

"This is … unnaturally strange …"

The ex-shinigami hated this current situation. He was the kind of man who liked having all the answers, to always know what laid in front of him. But this time, he was simply at a loss. He could hear Mayuri saying something to him, but he didn't have any attention to spare at the moment. At that time, all his attention was focused on the remains of what he supposed once was a shinigami.

That is, until Ichigo demanded some answers.

"Get your head out of the clouds already!" Ichigo's oh so very loud voice boomed behind them.

Urahara screamed, not because of the near heart-attack Ichigo's loud voice game him, but because he was about to fall in the 'dirt', and he would have if his hand wouldn't have somehow managed to get a grip on Ichigo's leg.

"That was close …" muttered Urahara, still holding on to the orange-haired boy's leg. Said boy, however, was not pleased with the action. And when Ichigo's not pleased …

"What the hell are you doing? Get off of me you bastard!" Ichigo shouted and started to shake his leg in mid-air, successfully stopping Kisuke to get a stable footing and thus forcing him to hang on to dear life to not to fall face first in the layer of dust on the floor.

… he makes things hard for everyone.

Hanatarou had no idea how he got himself into this.

He could hear a dog barking somewhere in the background, could hear cars in the distance, but he could _see_ a very large man munching on a piece of chicken right in front of him.

Hanataro tried to stop himself from trebling by taking one last sip of sake, but with no visible success. Usually, he wouldn't drink the stuff, but desperate times ask for desperate measures. And this time, he was desperate. A small hollow dog was running around in circles around him, but he gave it no attention. His only worry at the moment was the large, strong and dangerous arrancar he was facing, and as he was watching said arrancar devour another chicken wing he mentally decided that he will sooner throw himself off a cliff then play "truth or dare" with anybody that's from, was, or is someone related with someone from the 11th Division.

But then again, Hanataro hardly ever learned from his mistakes.

Slowly, he turned back, spotting the bald head of Ikkaku Madarame – whose owner he supposed to be hiding behind that big flower vase, along with the "friendly" smile of Yumichika Ayasegawa, the one who was currently waving his hand as signal to get going.

Starting to panic once again, Hanataro decided to take a deep, long breath before putting the cup down on the nearest table. Then, armed with the determination he knew he didn't really have, he marched the few short steps to his destination.

He could do this.

"What the hell do you want, small-fry?" Hanataro gulped.

Seven. That's all it took: seven, or probably eight, words to kill that small part of him that still had a little bit of courage. Turning his gaze back, he found that both Ikkaku and Yumichika had disappeared.

What, in the name of all that's right and fair in this world made him say he'll pick the dare! Why couldn't he learn that a "dare" is suicide if you're playing with bored member of the 11th Division? And why did he agree to play that stupid game in the first place? Oh ya' – because he was bored…

And suddenly, he felt so very alone. And the arrancar still looked like he wanted an answer.

"E-excuse me … mi-mister Espa- I mean arrancar! … I was, kind of wondering if you … What I'm meaning to say is … You see …"

"Spill it out already! I don't have the whole bloody day!" the arrancar roared at the small shinigami, making the small boy take two fast steps back.

Hanataro hated his luck.

"I was … wondering if you … I'm so dead. I was wondering if you would like to play any board games with me and the other guys." He said the last part so fast that Yammi almost couldn't tell what he was talking about. The large arrancar did manage to hear "play" and "board games", but he was not understanding what the other meant by that.

"Could you repeat that, small-fry, but slower this time?" Yammi asked of the young shinigami and Hanatarou took one deep breath.

"I was wondering …"

"I heard that already." More barking coming from the background.

"… would you like to play … some … board games?"

For a couple of moments, Yammi just stared at the boy with a dark expression on his face. Was he serious? He didn't like being made fun at. If this … this _childe_ was trying to have some fun on his expense then … He so wanted to kill the kid! Only for making him think about these sort of things. Still, "terms are terms" as Ulquiorra told them while still in Hueco Mundo. There were moments like these that he wished he would know what a "term" was for that matter. Damn Ulquiorra! And damn that treaty! Well, either way, he was not in the mood for board games, so maybe he could spare the boy – for the moment.

"I don't like board games. So no, I won't play board games." He said simply, making no effort to ignore the barking in the background. "Keep quiet, you stupid dog!"

"Yip, yip, yip …" he roared at the dog, throwing an unfinished chicken bone at it. Fortunately, the dog managed to get out of the way before it got hit, taking shelter behind an equally scared Hanataro.

"You know, you shouldn't treat your dog like that. You might actually hurt it someday."

The young shinigami did not know what exactly possessed him to say something like that to a person he knew could blow his head off his fragile body in less the time it would take a normal man to blink. But what he did know was that he did, and that was because he, Yamada Hanataro, will never learn…

"Do you have a problem with the way I treat my pets?" Yammi asked, leaning towards the small boyish figure of Hanatarou. If he knew how to do something, it was intimidation.

"N-no! No I don't!" Hanataro tried to find an excuse for his outburst. Why did he have to be a dog lover? Better yet, why couldn't he just keep his big mouth shut? "I-I'm sorry Mr. Arrancar! I-I don't know what got over me! I-I … I wasn't thinking! I would never accuse you of mistreating your four-legged friend!"

"Shut the hell up, small-fry! And stop calling me "Mr. Arrancar". I have a name you know! It's Yammi and you better remember that!" Yammi roared at the smaller of the two, making Hanataro feel even smaller. "And stop using big, fancy words that I don't understand or I'll really carve a hole right through your head!"

Hanataro did not dare to stay another second. Once he was sure his legs could move again, he spun on his heels and started running faster than he ever did in his entire afterlife. He didn't even bother to yell out an apology as he usually did – out of habit more than anything else – nor did he stop when in his panic he hit the table he had left his sake cup less than two minutes ago. He heard the sound of something break and then there was a splash, but he didn't care. Right now, all he cared about was survival.

But he did notice the dog that was now accompanying him out the door and to safety.

Yammi smiled to himself as he saw the little shinigami run like hell. Now that was a way to get rid of snoopy kids, and for a man like Yammi, there was nothing better than doing just that.

Yammi hated children. They were always so small and helpless, hardly ever putting up a fight. They would always cry and wine and beg and cry again. God, why did such pathetic creatures have to live in the first place? Looking at you with their puppy-dog eyes, sniffing and trying to keep the tears that would not stay hid away … Yammi hated children, because they were so damn pathetic! But what was most unnerving about the little ones was that they always try to get close to you. Even if they are terrified of you, even if they know you can kill them without hesitation, they always try to get closer to you and eventually ask something of you. And from that moment on, they start to get annoying.

Yammi cursed out loud, hit the fallen table with his foot, and then cursed again when he accidentally stepped on the puddle of sake that has formed on the floor.

'Curse that kid! This all is his fault!' Yammi thought to himself as he finally settled down and took his time to take off his wet sock. Sniffing it, he recognized the smell of sake and almost immediately decided that he needed a cup. That was when he realized he didn't know where these blasted humans kept all the alcohol.

"Really now Yammi, you should be more understanding with the young ones." A sleepy voice said behind Yammi.

Yammi didn't need to turn in order to know who the owner of that voice was. Although heard rarely, it was almost impossible not to recognize the voice of the one who once was the Primera Espada of Lord Aizen's army.

"Why should I?" Yammi asked his ex-superior, not taking note of the great amount of a difference in power between them.

"Because they are children. It's natural for them to be curious. And because they have yet to experience life, you can't expect them to know what they can and can't do. You can't hope for them to know… their limits." Stark replied with patience, earning a glare from the larger man. Yammi was ready to let loose all that was on his mind at that very moment, and probably inflict further damage on the room in the process, but then he noticed something very… out of place at the stronger of the two. Stark's eyes no longer had that dreamy glow in them, the one almost everybody he knew had when they woke after a very long and pleasant sleep. No, this time they seemed different – sadder, troubled and dead.

Without another word, Stark left the room, leaving Yammi to listen to the crickets that somehow entered his brain.

"What in the world was that all about?" he finally managed to say, once the crickets left.

Curses! Just when has everything become so awfully confusing? First he started to think on how annoying children were, then Stark shocked him with that most pelicular behavior of his and now his mind was simply… blank.

He so wished Ulquiorra was there to explain all this shit to him. The little brat always managed to understand these sorts of things better than he ever would. Sometimes he was actually wondering how he did it. It's not like the kid had more brains then him. He was a kid after all and kids … Did he just call Ulquiorra a kid?

All this thinking was not good for him.

* * *

"There we are, dear. Isn't it better now?"

Orihime looked at the clean white bandage that now covered her upper-right hand. She moved it a bit and tested her finger – everything seemed alright. It still stinged a bit, where that thing grabbed her, but it sure was a lot better than before. Unohana-taichou said that it was nothing serious and that she could get rid of the bandages in about two weeks if she was to take care of it properly. Now those were some really good news for her…

Considering the fact that Ulquiorra was the one who sustained the most damage.

"That is good. I will leave you with Isane-san for now. I need to make sure Ishida-san won' kill my patient." That last sentence didn't help Orihime feel better tough. Again, someone was hurt because of her – Ulquiorra was hurt because of her – and she could do nothing to make things better again. She looked at the broken hair pin in her lap and it the tiny little missing piece that once was her dear Shun'ou. Her eyes started to water, but she wiped the tears away before any of them had the chance to fall, but took a deep breath in and nodded just as Unohana moved to exit the room.

Carefully picking up the pin, she started toying with it, moving it from one hand to another till she decided it was fine to just feel the delicate texture in her fingers. She could hear voices coming from the other room. Seems Ishida's father was not comfortable with shinigami in "his" hospital. He sure didn't seem pleased when Unohana called for Isane using _his _office phone. Ever since then he's been acting like a hawk – his eyes on the female captain twenty-four/seven. Maybe it was only her, but wasn't that a bit exaggerated?

Looking up from her hairpin, the young redhead noticed that the vice-captain was currently busy cleaning and washing some medical instruments she didn't know the name for. Careful not to make too much noise, she leaned back on her chair, hoping to spot some movement in the next room, where she knew Ishida senior was currently "taking care" of Ulquiorra.

Although the door was wide open, Orihime couldn't see much of anything. All she was able to see was a blue and white medical cabinet and some shadows moving on the floor, but unfortunately not what she was hoping to see.

Taking a more comfortable position in her chair, Orihime allowed herself to sigh.

"Inoue-san? Are you alright? You seam troubled." Isane asked while raising her eyes from her task to glance at Orihime.

"Oh, no, everything is just fine Isane-san. I was just thinking." Orihime hurried to excuse herself. Isane seemed to notice that something was off, but thankfully for Orihime, she didn't seem to give the matter too much attention. Asking the teenage girl if she needed anything, the tall member of the fourth division returned to her own work, though this time she kept one eye open at Orihime's direction.

Regardless of common belief, Orihime was the kind of girl that did learn from experience. True, she may be a little slow at times, but she was not stupid. She noticed the look Unohana gave her and she knew that was a sign. She needed to control herself. Curiosity killed the cat, as they say. She needed to stop worrying and focus on something.

She tried following Isane as she was moving around the room, but found that unconsciously her eyes would travel back to the half-open door. So she looked for something else.

Then she noticed a clock, calmly ticking its life away on the wall. Orihime's eyes took in every little detail of it, the bold, black numbers printed on that round piece of white plastic, the little hands that showed her the time, exactly 10:21 p.m. – no, now it was 10:22 … 22 and two seconds … three seconds … four … five … And time kept on flying away, much like it did to everyone. She briefly wondered if time seemed to pass the same way for souls. She knew they were close to immortal, but still, had time the same value as it did to humans? Did the ticking of a clock mean that much to a shinigami, or to an arrancar, as it did to her?

But then she found herself asking: what did time mean to her? Not something very precious from the looks of it, because right now, she was wasting time, much like she did when she was a captive in Las Noches … much like when Ulquiorra was her caretaker… when he took care of her…

She shook her head. No! She would not give in. She did not care what happened to that hollow. For all she cared he could die a million times over. It was not her place to care for such a monster. No. Right now, watching the clock was what was important. Yes, she needed to watch the clock. And what was the clock doing? It was ticking, and ticking … and ticking … ticking … tick-tock … tick-tock … tick-tock … tick ….

And then there was silence.

"Talk about timing…" Orihime almost creamed in frustration, almost.

Just then, a cough came from the other room, and Orihime picked up the sound of Ishida senior's voice. If Ishida's father was the one that was talking, then the only one that could be coughing would be … But that was just not right. Not once, during all her weeks of imprisonment has she ever heard the green-eyed espada even get close to such a human habit as coughing. That was… just not right.

No longer aware that she was not supposed to care; Orihime leaned back in her chair, much like the last time. This time however, she did manage to catch a glimpse of white fabric. Leaning a little more, she could see Ishida's father, but couldn't see what he was doing. Taking one last look to see if Isane noticed what she was doing, Orihime leaned more – and more – until she was balancing the chair on its two back legs. Now, if she could only lean in just a little more …

"Inoue-san!"

"AHHHH!!!" that was all that Orihime could say before her chair tipped a little too much, resulting in her unexpected meeting with the floor.

"Ah, Inoue-san! Are you all-right? Oh, my God, I didn't mean to frighten you into losing your balance but you and –" Isane started to apologize, scanning the now embarrassed redhead for any new wounds. Out of all the days to wear a skirt …

"Shinigami, please calm down. Babbling like a school girl will not help that girl in any way." said Ishida senior as he approached the two girls. Isane straightened herself in an instant, much like a solder would in front of a commanding officer, while Orihime tried to cover herself up and to keep the blush she knew was going to come away. Last she needed was to look like a crab in front of the father of one of her best of friends.

"Are you harmed, child?" Ishida senior asked in his usual rather blunt tone.

"Yes, I am quite fine. I had worse!" Orihime answered a bit too quickly. "I was just bored, and then I heard voices and I couldn't understand and I was just curious to see how …" but then she found that she could say no more.

On her little spot on the floor, Orihime stood frozen in place. She watched in awe as Unohana's steady hands were carefully bandaging Ulquiorra's hands. He looked so tired and his eyes were clouded, like he was not really there. Bags were starting to form under his eyes and Orihime suddenly felt even guiltier than before. It was clear that her former caretaker was in worse shape than she first taught.

"He will be alright, Inoue-san." Unohana told her while still giving her current patient all the attention a doctor could ever give to his or her patient. "Though it might take a little while for his wounds to heal and he might get a few scars, but other than that, he'll be just fine. Ishida-sensei has done a good job cleaning his wounds."

Orihime visibly relaxed. It was like a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

But not everyone in the room shared her state of spirit. "I –" Ryuuken started, lifting his glasses further up his nose "- always do a good job when it comes to treating my patients, whoever, or whatever the patient is."

"I have never questioned your qualities as a doctor, Ishida-sensei. If anything I was only applauding your splendid work. Schiffer-san, please tell me if it hurts when I do this."

"Madam, with all due respect, but I was not born yesterday, and I believe I know the difference between a sign of admiration and one of – " Ryuuken said in a tone a little more harsh than his usual one.

"That is very nice, Ishida-san… Now, mister Schiffer, I will advise you to speak as little as possible for a few days until your body will grow a decent layer of skin around your throat. Also, try to protect your hands. I would suggest wearing gloves – "It was almost funny, the way Unohana could so easily ignore the human doctor and stick to her duty. Orihime was just about to giggle when Isane shot her a look that clearly said "this is not the time".

"Madam!" Ryuuken almost roared with impatience, scaring poor Isane so bad that she was now practically hiding behind Orihime. What was so wrong in this picture? Well, probably the fact that Orihime herself was shaking in fear.

And she used to wonder who Ishida takes after.

Unohana however didn't seem affected by that. "I assure you there is no need to get so loud, Ishida-sensei." Unohana calmly said as she finished bandaging Ulquiorra's burns. "At least not in front of the children…"

Orihime could swear that she saw steam coming out of Ryuuken's ears…

"And how are our friends doing?" Urahara chirped in, his cheerful tone erasing all the tension from the room. "Inoue-san?"

It took her a moment to tell that he was talking to her. "Oh, well, I am quite fine! Unohana-taichou said that I'll be quite fine in a few days." She said, pointing to the bandage.

"Great news, my dear! Truly great news!" In response, Orihime smiled. Urahara has a really strange effect on people. "Now, let's see how our dear arrancar-san is doing."

* * *

As much as he tried to hide it, Ulquiorra was not feeling too well. He could bare almost any kind of injury, but burns did not fall into that category. Burns were "nasty" as Grimmjow once said. They hurt, they really hurt, and they could not close up like cuts did, and it took a lot of energy for them to close up again – too much energy. Breathing was painful, his hands burned even after the shinigami healer treated him and to top it all he also felt slightly dizzy.

He slowly touched the bandages around his neck with the tips of his fingers, taking in the fact that this time he needed to be patient. Growing skin was never a pleasant thing. Still, he had to consider himself lucky. If it wasn't for his high-speed regeneration ability then he would be the one that turned to dust. At the moment he could vaguely remember how each time he managed to grow skin that thing was burning it all over again.

But the real pain didn't kick in until they were half-way to the medical cabinet. He had been using too much energy to heal, even more than usual, and he started feeling the effects of it. At one point he felt almost drained of all power, and he still was not able to heal the skin from his palms and neck.

He didn't like burns. He would have preferred anything but not burns.

It was interesting though. How could bodies that had no heat manage to burn right through his hierro just by touching him? It made no sense. But as he learned from past experiences, it didn't have to make sense for it to be real. Just look at that Kurosaki brat…

But he still managed to keep up his poker face up, despite all he was feeling at the moment. That was the only card he had to play – acting. Even back in Hueco Mundo he was always acting – pretending because he knew that although he was strong, he knew that there will always be someone stronger than him, someone that would not have any problems killing him just because it was "good sport". Ulquiorra knew how the world worked, so he did all he could do – adapt and improvise. Nobody would try to fight someone that seemed stronger than them, so Ulquiorra learned how to seem strong, even when he was not.

It is true that neither Unohana Retsu nor her vice-captain seemed to wish him any harm, but he was not so sure about the quincy, Ishida Ryuuken. He may be a doctor, but that was not a good enough reason, in Ulquiorra's opinion, to trust him quite yet. In fact, he wasn't ready to trust anybody just yet, reason why he didn't leave his guard down for a single second, not even when the quincy was treating his burns or Unohana stepped in to bandage them. He did not want the others to see how vulnerable he felt right then.

Still, he felt so tired. He heard movement and voices, but they all seemed so far away. What was wrong with him? He could swear he wasn't feeling so… drained now half an hour ago.

"Now, let's see how arrancar-san is doing." A merry, oh so very annoying in Ulquiorra's opinion, voice chirped.

In less than seconds, Ulquiorra was brought back to reality. He knew that voice. It sounded very close and his eyes scanned the area in his immediate vicinity only to find Urahara Kisuke kneeling in front of him and putting a hand on his forehead, checking for a fever.

"You're kinda' warm, little one, and that's never a good sign." Urahara said before retrieving his hand. "Now tell me… erm… Cifer, was it?"

"Schiffer" Ulquiorra corrected him. Urahara laughed.

"Yes, yes, Schiffer-san. You think you can answer a few questions? I promise it won't take long." Ulquiorra thought about it for a moment. He could talk, if that was what the blond wanted to know, but he couldn't see what he wanted to know from him. If it had something to do with the "zombie" incident then he was not the only one that could offer questions.

"If this is concerning the three now missing corps then I think you should better ask Inoue Orihi-"

"As helpful as Inoue-san is, she sometimes tends to ramble, and right now I need short, clear, straight-forward answers. You think you can help me in that matter, comrade?" Urahara Kisuke said, with a russian accent in his voice.

* * *

Ichigo was sitting right outside the door, waiting for something to happen. Urahara told him that he wanted to ask the arrancar a few questions and that he should "stick around" until he would be done.

He really hoped he won't ask him to fight the pale arrancar or anything of the sort. He was not feeling quite like himself lately. His hollow was kind of reckless up in his inner word and kept screaming something along the lines "let me out you mothrefucker!". Ichigo decided to ignore him.

He hadn't heard his hollow be quite so pissed off for years, and Ichigo was slightly afraid that he might lose control. But as he knew all too well, that was not an option. Labeling this train of thoughts as useless, he decided to do something more useful – like counting the dots on the ceiling.

Not long after he counted the one-hundred and twenty-second dots on the ceiling, the door slammed open, revealing a pretty cheerful Urahara, followed closely by Orihime who was helping Ulquiorra keep his balance.

"Thank you very much for your help, Schiffer-san, Inoue-san. You have been most helpful. Now, Kurosaki-san over here will see that you two will get home safely and … Kurosaki-san? Where did he go?" Urahara asked, realizing that Ichigo was nowhere in sight.

"Uf a efer hef ah ahns oh ough …" A muffed voice came from behind the door, and just when Urahara was about to put his hand on the handle, Ichigo slammed the door back shut, murder clearly written on his face. He didn't see how close he was to hitting Ulquiorra and Orihime and neither did he hear the distinctive "AAAHHHHH!!" coming from the other room.

"Urahara, I ougtha slam your face to the pavement you sick bastard!" Ichigo yelled in anger. Urahara simply hid his face behind his little fan.

"Language, Kurosaki-san, language. You're giving a bad example…" he said pointing towards Ulquiorra, Orihime and Ishida senior who just re-opened the door, holding on to his bloody nose. "Anyway, I need you to see that Inoue-san and Schiffer-san get home safely and – "

"Home?" Asked Ichigo, not liking the way hat and clogs just said that.

"Why yes, home, your home more exactly Kurosaki-kun. Now, I need to have a word with Unohana-san, so if you three won't mind, we'll be having a little doctors' meeting."

And with that, he dragged Ishida back inside, leaving the three young spirits standing in the hallway. No one knew what to say.

* * *

The walk back to the Kurosaki residence started out with Ichigo cursing Urahara and then talking about his mother until a woman shot him a dirty look. He did not utter another word for a long while.

Orihime was still helping Ulquiorra walk properly, not caring how odd she must be looking holding onto something that was not visible to ordinary humans. The arrancar seemed to have lost a great deal of energy in the last hour, and Orihime could not shake away the blame. If only she could have just ignored her curiosity… if only…

"Woman?" Orihime shot her gaze back to Ulquiorra. "Are you ill?"

Only he could ask such a question with little to no emotion in his voice. "I am fine Ulquiorra-san. I was just thinking and…"

Ulquiorra was waiting for her to continue, but when she didn't, he decided to remind her that he was still there. "Yes?"

"Well …" she hesitated. "I was only wondering… Why did you come back for me? And why did you save me? Nobody asked you to do it."

Ulquiorra didn't respond at first, probably because he didn't know what to say. Truth be told, he didn't know why exactly why he did all those things. He wasn't gaining anything from it and as the woman said, nobody asked him to do it. Everything just happened, and as much as he hated to accept the fact, watching out for the woman seemed so … natural for him.

"You can call it a habit woman. It's not like all those weeks of taking care of you didn't mean anything …" but he wasn't able to finish his sentence for a unexpected cough took over, stealing all the air from his lungs. Orihime stopped walking, giving Ulquiorra time to recover, but when the coughing only started to get worse, she helped him sit down on a nearby bench.

"Ulquiorra-san? Are you all-right?" she asked him when the coughing finally stopped. He simply nodded, preferring not to speak for the moment.

Orihime felt so useless right then. She knew Ulquiorra must have a reason for not using his regenerating powers. Her guess was that he was just too tired to do it. If only she had her fairies…

Suddenly, she realized something. Ichigo was nowhere to be seen. He must not have noticed when they stopped. Looking around for him, her eyes landed on a little coffee shop only a few feet away.

Maybe she was not all that useless after all.

"Ulquiorra-san, would you like a glass of water?" she asked the arrancar, but when she got no response, she asked another question "erm… can you even drink water?" this time however, Ulquiorra allowed himself to sigh before he nodded, much to Orihime's joy. "I'll be right back then."

But she barely managed to up from the bench when a heavy yet familiar wave of reiatsu hit them hard. It has been so long since either of them felt it, but there was no mistaking it.

"Kurosaki-kun…"

Not far from them, Karakura town was becoming more surreal with each passing second. The ground was cracked and the buildings were ready to fall. Pieces of broken window were floating all around; giving one the impression that time had frozen. The now soulless body of Kurosaki Ichigo lay carelessly in the middle of the street, and near him a creature dressed in white – a creature that resembled Ichigo in so many ways and at the same time was his opposite in the same number of ways began to chuckle.

"Finally, that pathetic idiot let his guard down! Now... time to part-e~!"

* * *

And Hichigo makes an appearance! (as promised Crazy Laughter!) What a way to end a chapter … Now I better get busy with next chapter – I plan to have it up as soon as I possibly can. So while cursing me … leave a review so I know I am not just wasting my time for nothing … please?


	7. Domi suae quilibet rex

OMG! It's a miracle! I updated! THE WORLD WILL END …. Not.

Ok, let's get over with the rand – chapter dedicated to the one, and only **Crazy Laughter** because of being such a great source of inspiration as well as my idol when it comes to fiction :3 – especially, FANFICTION. Thank you for everything!

Now … happy reading ^^ (and please, please, PLEASE leave a review if you found this just a little bit interesting – I'm feeling neglected ;_; )

* * *

**_Domi suae quilibet rex (In his home, any man is king)_**

Hannibal, son of Hamilcar Barca - a name feared by the Ancient Romans almost as feared as death itself. Nowadays, he's name is a synonym with danger. History says that Hannibal was a Carthaginian military commander and tactician who is commonly credited as one of the most talented strategists in history. Though legends say that he was not just a man – he was the one that brought death.

Legend…

They say the ancient world was built on legends, on frightening tales of war, of grief and death – stories that will keep a man from being reckless, from searching for glory, or simply from building themselves a greater destiny. But man is such a simple creature – primitive even. Man cannot build their own destiny, they cannot change destiny. All they can do is hide it, hide it with lies.

But Urahara Kisuke was a scientist. He did not believe in legends, he did not believe in destiny and he had long since learned to see past the lies. Still, the thing about the things in which you don't believe in is that sometimes, they are real.

"Kisuke, as your former assistant and pupil I'll ask you: have you gone completely insane?" A crazy scientist that looked like a psychopathic clown asked Urahara Kisuke.

Urahara took a moment to analyze the question. Maybe Mayuri was right – everything seemed so surreal – even for him. But then again he had been a witness to even stranger situations in his lifetime.

Still, he could easily be wrong. His entire synopsis was based on mere coincidences so there was no reason for him to believe that his worst fear suddenly became reality. That is why he decided to first talk to the only three people that could listen to such a fantasy-like theory and still keep an open mind.

He silently watched from his place on the small stool the arrancar occupied now a while ago as both Kurotsuchi Mayuri, Unohana Retsu and Ishida Ryuuken looked at him with clear disbelief. As he presumed, Mayuri was the first to explode. He was, after all, shaking the very foundation of all of his friend's beliefs. As he continued to study the reactions of the other people in the room, he wondered if it was a good idea to wait for Mayuri. He could have told Unohana and Ishida about his hypnosis long before he even considered informing his former assistant.

Unohana – sweet, calm and wonderful Unohana looked like she was about to collapse there and then. Urahara couldn't remember the last time he saw her so… terrified before. Ishida senior on the other hand managed to hide his emotions rather well, but he too seemed unease by the news.

All was silent for a while, time in which Urahara tried to think.

He tried to remember all that happened, all he saw, and all that the arrancar told him.

The bodies turned to dust right before the eyes of both hollow and human. There was a chill in the air, tough the touch of what they first presumed were lifeless bodies burned the skin. It was just like before, like when everything started. The warning, the threat, the prophecy… the curse…

"… _you will die… I curse you… for everything you did… YOU WILL ALL DIE!!!"_

Everything fell into place…

"Urahara-san…" Unohana started, finally recovering from the initial shock. "What you say is just -"

"I know how this sounds, but I mean, think about it! Everything seems to fit in place. He did say that –"

"_He _is _dead,_ Kisuke. And the founders of Seireitei made sure he will stay that way." Unohana said in a clear voice full of certainty and authority.

Urahara had nothing to say to that. He read the books, he asked the elders and he heard the legends… but still…

"But still, he swore revenge on us, on all humanity. People like him don't just make threats like that when they know they can't see to it. Is it so wrong to consider? I know what I say may sound like fiction, but all of this happened before, did it not?" He paused for a moment, searching the looks of his fellow researchers. When none said of word, he continued. "Look: both hollows and shinigami are dying. Sooner or later humans will start to die as well. And this, and God I can't believe I'm saying it… _legend_, is all we have right now."

"We are all aware of that, Kisuke." Mayuri said. "So what do you propose we do? Go travel to another dimension and risk losing the few men we still have?" Urahara was silent. "Thought so."

"But, if this is his curse..." Unohana stepped in timidly. "… then, wouldn't that mean that we would have received something? A warning or a sign or… something?"

How much he hoped to be wrong. Never has he hopped to be so wrong in his life but now… he hoped so greatly to be tad more stupid…

"Now, if we can forget about fairy tales and concentrate on the facts –"

But the captain of the 12th Division had no time to finish his sentence, because just then they all felt the earth shake, and for a moment, found it impossible to breath.

"What in the…" Ryuuken started, but was cut-off by another blast of raw hollow energy.

"_Hannibal__ ad portas…_" was all Urahara said before dashing out the door, not bothering to check if the others were coming.

Right then, Urahara hated to be right.

* * *

Smoke, dust… and fire – that was all you really needed to install chaos. The rest … just comes on its own accord.

"Boy… has King been slaking these years. So many things to break and he just stood there. Oh well…" Without even the slightest warning he shot a blast of Getsuga Tenshou from Zangetsu's blade right at a random car. The vehicle did a double flip in the air before crashing into what looked like a office building for before anyone knew what was happening thousands of burnings sheets of paper and glass were flying in every direction. People were screaming, cars were crashing in each other and everything was on fire. This was heaven for a hollow.

"Sweet!" Said the hollow, looking back at all the chaos he created. "Now, I wonder what would happen if I take aim at that thing King calls a truck – AHH!!" just as he was about to fire, a sudden pain hit him in the chest. Clutching the fabric of his kimono, he mentally cursed Ichigo for not listening to him. He warned him, but did he listen? Of course he didn't – and that was why they were now both on the clear road to destruction. That is, if he didn't fix this mess himself.

"Please…" He suddenly froze. "Please… don't…"

Ignoring whatever pain he was still feeling, he turned his head to the right, his golden eyes searching for the one who kept making those strange sounds. Soon enough, he found it – or should he start calling it a "her".

It was a girl. She seemed young – around twenty-five if he was to make an estimation, but at the same time, she looked older, much older than that. And he knew why she looked like that. It was the fear – her eyes were wide as watermelons, her face was twisted in horror, her teeth were clinkering and her week human body was trembling like a leaf. She didn't seem to be thinking any more. Even here prime instincts have failed her – otherwise why would she still be there, looking at him with that look on her face. Fear had completely over her, the hollow noted. She looked so… pathetic.

"Please… please… don't hurt me…" The woman said, quivering like a leaf.

That was all he needed.

"Why hello beautiful!" Said the hollow, as all the pain seemed to just fade away. He listed his zanpakato and let it rest on his shoulder as he slowly approached the poor girl. A small grin was spreading on his face and his golden eyes had locked the woman in place.

"Please… I beg of you..."

"Yes, beg. Beg all you want, bitch!" He reached out for her and she moved to run, but found that she couldn't. The hollow was right – fear had completely taken her over. "That only makes me all the happier to kill you!"

The girl screamed.

"HELP ME ERASE THE PAIN!"

* * *

Hanataro was not one to think too much about things he could not control. If Yammi wanted to be a jerk and treat him like garbage, then let him do as he pleased. Hanataro knew how to take a hint. He was not a fighter, after all. He didn't like trouble and he didn't like battles. If it was after him, then there wouldn't be no more wars, no more tears, no more suffering.

"Ruff!" Yammi's dog barked in, trying to gain the small shinigami's attention.

From his spot at the shade of an old tree, he got to his feet and stretched a bit. It was dependently a fine summer's day.

Reaching out to pat the dog, he felt a shiver run down his spine. When had it gotten so cold? He looked up, and noticed the sun was gone. Heavy grey clouds suddenly filled the sky, and Hanatarou – as crazy at it may sound – wondered briefly if they somehow ate the sun.

There was an explosion, and there were screams and Hanataro felt it.

He could hear noise coming from the house – questions that sounded like "what's happening" and "what was that", but he, Hanataro, felt robbed of the capacity to do anything.

Hanataro didn't find the strength to even blink. Dog was barking, trying to wake him up from his trance. He just kept looking, and looking, and kept on looking at the sight before him. He could feel it, the raw, unstable spiritual pressure of a hollow – but also … he could feel it.

"Hey kid?" It was Yammi. "I was just thinking… you know. I'm sorry I called you a small-fry. My partner is quite short himself and I just know he would have hit me if I was ever going to call him 'short'. But he's a good kid, deep down there somewhere and… Kid, what's wrong with you?"

"Kurosaki-san…"

* * *

"Oh my God…"

Everything was silent. All the screams and yells and explosions were gone, and all that remained was silence.

"Ulquiorra-san, what happened here? Did… did Kurosaki-kun really…" Orihime found that she could not finish that question, because in all honestly, she didn't want to know. It had only taken them seconds to reach the spot where all hell broke loose, but never could she have imagined what one could do in only a couple of seconds. She could not believe that the one responsible for the sight in front of her was one of her friends. "Oh God!" She just couldn't believe.

Ulquiorra looked at the sight, then at the girl besides him. Four years ago he would have said that she looked pathetic, scrawny and weak, but now he wasn't sure anymore. She looked like someone had just broken all of her dreams, all of her beliefs, all of her hopes. He could read the despair in her eyes, mixed with an odd hint of horror, but most of all, he could see sorrow. It was the same look one usually had when they learned of someone's death.

Shifting his gaze away from her, he took in his surroundings.

What once was a calm, clean street was now but a memory. Cars were blown to pieces, buildings were falling apart, the concrete was creaked beyond any possible repair and broken glass and blood now decorated the surreal sight, everything slightly masked by the stick layer of dust and smoke that floated in the now hot air.

The city was burning.

"Ulquiorra-san… could… could anyone survive something like this?" The girl said, trying harder than ever to stay optimistic. Ulquiorra didn't answer. "There could still be survivors!"

"Woman –" Ulquiorra tried to tell her it was useless, but it seems she was not ready to listen to reason just yet.

"Hello? Is anybody there? Hello?! Someone, please! Answer me!" Orihime screamed desperately and Ulquiorra heard her running from his side

Calmly, he turned to watch her search among the wreckage. He saw her screaming out if anybody was there, checking behind every stone and fallen wall. Her face so full of sorrow and fear it reminded him of someone he once knew. He didn't know why, but he could not bear to look at her any more. He started moving further into the destroyed intersection, trying very hard not to listen to Orihime's breaking voice. He kept moving forward, silently counting all the human bodies his calculative eyes found. There was no need to check, he knew there was no way for them to be alive.

"Someone PLEASE!!!"

Ulquiorra found that he couldn't take the girl's cries any more. Not now, not when everything was so familiar to him. He covered his ears with his hands, hoping that he will stop hearing the girl's cries.

The sounds of bombs, the weeping, the pain, the smell of gunpowder mixed with that of blood. The memory was still so clear in his mind. He cursed. Aizen had promised him that he could take the memories away. He said that if he was to join him then it will all be gone. But it wasn't. He could still remember everything that happened in his human life. He could remember all the pain, all the tears – everything.

He closed his eyes and kept on moving, forcing the images out of his head. Soon, he stepped on something considerably softer then concrete. That was when he made one last effort to pull back from the painful memory, slowly forcing his way back to reality. Opening his eyes, he saw that indeed he stepped on something that did not resemble concrete. Slowly, he moved his foot out of the way, noticing that he had stepped on a doll – a small, fragile, porcelain doll. Her dress was burned around the edges and a mixture of ash and concrete dust stained her. Kneeling down, he carefully picked up the abused item. It was then that he noticed that she was missing an eye and that one of her hands was broken. He looked at her eye. It was of a beautiful shade of green, much like his he supposed. Although it would be strange to say something like this about a doll, she looked sad, and Ulquiorra could recall all the emotions he could read in Orihime's eyes.

Maybe if he was human, he would have had the same look in his eyes.

"Feeling melancholic?" Ulquiorra's eyes widened in surprise at the sound of the unfamiliar voice. "I got to admit, I wasn't expecting something like that from a hollow." Ulquiorra heard the sound of metal being scraped along concrete, carefully masked by the sound of an evil giggle. "But I'm so happy I managed to find you. Killing helpless humans is not all that fun, especially when they don't fight back. And it still hurts so bad… But you'll help me stop the pain, won't you? You'll manage to help me …"The sounds were coming from behind him and when he noticed the shape of a man lifting something over his head, he knew.

"KILL THE PAIN!!!"

* * *

Orihime was trying very hard not to cry. They were dead. Everybody she saw was dead – every single one. She saw the remains of a girl that was supposed to be just a few years older than her and she saw the feet of what she supposed was a man, once. She was not able to find his upper-body.

Why was this happening? Why couldn't she do anything? Why was she so useless? Why did she have to lose Shun'Ou?

She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that would help her block out the painful images. She so wanted to be like Ulquiorra at times – uncaring to everything around her.

Suddenly, she heard an explosion – so strong she had to block her ears with her hands and open her mouth. She felt she was going to die when a strong, hot wind came from behind her, literally blowing her off her feet. The next thing she knew she was on her chest, then on her back, then finally, her head hit a wall, and she couldn't hear nor see a thing.

* * *

"You're good, hollow. Most wouldn't even see it coming, and you managed to dodge it. I must say, I'm impressed." A golden-eyed Kurosaki Ichigo said with a sneer in his voice.

He had been careless. Ulquiorra should have felt his presence a long time ago.

"But you still look a little shabby to me. That cut at least should be taken care of." Ulquiorra froze. A cut? Out of instinct, he reached for his left arm. Drawing his hand back, he noticed his pale fingers were covered in blood – in his blood. "You seem distracted." The hollow said. "Mind telling little old me what was on your mind?"

Ulquiorra then shifted all his attention back to the other hollow. It looked a lot like Ichigo, but he could tell it wasn't him. White hair, white kimono, pale skin, yellow eyes – it was definitely a hollow. And he could remember that spiritual pressure.

The hollow looked at him slightly perplexed.

"You're not too talkative, are you? It's been a long time since I last came out to play, and not even a 'welcome to the land of the living'? I'm hurt. King used to think such great things about this place… Or could it be that you're mute?"

Ulquiorra didn't reply. He knew better than to let his guard down. He remembered this hollow. It was the one that he fought now a long time ago atop of Las Noches, the one that possessed Kurosaki Ichigo's body after he stabbed him in the chest – it was the hollow that almost killed him. But this time it was different: he seemed to be completely in control over Ichigo's body. Apart from the physical resemblance … there was almost nothing left of Kurosaki Ichigo.

"Wait a second. I think I remember you… yes… I remember you, espada. You fought King before, did you not? Yes. You killed him twice if I remember well. I came out at some point I recon, and I believe I did quite a number on you, did I not?"

Ulquiorra still didn't reply. Slowly, he reached for Murciélago, but didn't have the time to even touch the hilt of his sword that the hollow was already behind him, his hand stopping his own from reaching Murciélago.

"Nuh-uh-uh… I don't want you giving me any trouble. No, sir!" said the hollow, still holding Ulquiorra's hand. And it may only be the arrancar's imagination, but was the hollow's skin … burning? "And to make sure you won't make a scene now… I'll be taking this –" Ulquiorra didn't move as the hollow slowly drew out Murciélago, nor when he waved if in front of his face or when he used it to play with his raven black hair. "- and now we may begin."

"Begin what?" Ulquiorra asked in a stoic voice.

"Ah! You do talk! For a moment there I thought you were mute! Wonderful! That means I'll get some screams out of you after all." The hollow said, leaning in closer and sniffing Ulquiorra's hair, the later fighting the urge to show just how sick the gesture made him. "Yes, you smell just right. Smells like… bat. So that's what your release form is, huh? Very interesting. I heard bats are fighters. I love fighters… and since you're a bat… Oh! I'm going to have so much fun with you!"

The raven haired man wanted nothing more than to crack the hollow's perverted skull. But Ulquiorra knew that if he tried anything at the moment then he could as well end his life then and there. Ulquiorra was no fool. Instead of charging into battle as Grimmjow would, he looked around, looking for anything he could use.

Concrete, bodies, blood, mud, a broken fire hydrant, fire … there were very little he could do with those.

But just then, the strangest thing happened. The hollow yelled in what Ulquiorra presumed it was pain, letting go of his hand. That was his chance.

Not giving the hollow any time to recover from whatever was the source of his pain, Ulquiorra sent his elbow in the hollow's stomach, knocking him off of his person, then – in one fluid motion – spun around and punched him right in the face. Then, while the hollow was trying to regain his balance, he aimed a cero at the now shocked apparition by exdenting the index finger of the hand he used to punch the hollow.

The cero hit the hollow in full, destroying what was left of a nearby building. As the structure collapsed, a thick cloud of dust rose in the air, making it difficult to see. As he stopped his attack, he looked around. There was no sign of the hollow anywhere. He couldn't believe something that almost brought him death while still in his Segunda Etapa could die because of a simple cero. His eyes scanned the area while his ears were focused on every single sound. He didn't like this.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" A voice full of maniacal joy rang out.

* * *

"Oh … my head …"

Orihime woke up in a spinning world. She held on to her head, hoping that that would somehow bring everything back to normal. Maybe she should stop eating experimental foods before going to bed. That way maybe she'd stop having all those strange dreams…

She felt something warm land on her shoulder. Turning, she noticed it was a hand… and it was covered in blood.

"AHHHHHHH!!!" she screamed. In her panic, she lost her balance, falling back on the ground. Opening her eyes again, she finally understood that this was not a dream. Lifting her head up, her eyes met the shape of the hand that almost gave her a heart attack – and it was on her chest.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!! GET IT OFF!!!" she screamed again, waving her hands fanatically and somehow managing to get the hand off of her. She stared in horror at the hand that now lay on the floor. Shivering from head to toe, she tried to get a hold of herself and get past the fear.

BOOM!

Now she was scared. That was certainly an explosion, and it most certainly came from somewhere near her. She wanted to hide and pray for this hell to end. But more explosions could be heard, then laughter, then she could hear the words "fight" and "hollow" and… Ulquiorra!

How could she? Only then had she remembered that he was with her too. She looked around, hoping to spot the arrancar. But there was no sign of him.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ulquiorra was having a hard time dodging the hollow's attacks. He barely managed to avoid one when he already needed to look out for another.

"What's wrong, hollow? It's no fun if you don't fight back!" the hollow that resembled Ichigo yelled out to him as Ulquiorra jumped a good ten feet in the air after avoiding another attack. Not even a second later, the hollow was behind Ulquiorra again and before the later had the time to even think, the hollow hit him with his own cero, sending Ulquiorra flying into a building.

"Hmph… " puffed the hollow, clearly not pleased. "You're no fun at all…"

It was a miracle the whole structure didn't fall when he broke those last five pillars, Ulquiorra concluded. But the only reason he was thinking that was because he was desperately trying to find something to distract him from all the pain.

He knew from the very moment they left the hospital that something was terribly wrong with him: his muscles hurt, his heart was racing, he was short of breath and he felt as though all the bones in his body were either broken or dislocated. Usually he would have regenerated himself long ago, but this time, just as the burns on his palms and neck, he couldn't.

Something must have happened at the hospital. That must have been it – something that affected both him and Ichigo, but what?

While forcing his hurting body to obey him and get to his feet, he tried to remember what the shinigami Urahara has asked him. He could recall that he was asking a lot of questions about a chill, about how the apparent cold bodies were hot to the touch, how they turned to dust and especially about what was happening afterwards.

There was something there.

After the bodies had turned into dust he saw something that at first glance would resemble steam, or probably even smoke. But it smelled strange, too strange for his liking. He remembered how Urahara's face went white when he mentioned that. Then he started asking if he somehow breathed in the smoke. That Ulquiorra honestly couldn't remember.

But he knew that there was something in those vapors. If Kurosaki would have accidentally breathed some, then maybe that was the reason why he suddenly changed into a hollow. But why would the hollow refer to him as King? Could the hollow be something like a double personality? Yes - something that would take over if Ichigo was not capable of fighting anymore… or living. Yes, that must be it.

"Hollow? Hey, hollow? Are you there, hollow?"

_Shit._

"Come out hollow!" A wall fell down. "Come out, come out and play!" Another wall fell.

Ulquiorra was moving from room to room, making as little noise as he possibly could, listening carefully to Ichigo's darker half's movements. Not too hard, considering the fact that the hollow was making quite a lot of noise.

He was… two rooms away, north, then entered a third one.

"Hollow, you know, I'm losing my patience here!"

He needed to think. Avoiding its attacks wouldn't work for long. The thing seemed to be getting wilder with each blow. He needed to stop him somehow. Last time he fought against this thing what did he do? He cut his mask in half. Only problem being that this time there was no mask.

"HOLLOW! GET OUT HERE NOW!"

One room away, east. It was time for him to move.

The hollow seemed to be running out of patience. Ulquiorra needed to find a solution to this problem, and fast. If he could somehow bring Kurosaki Ichigo back…

"Ulquiorra-san?!"

That was the moment when time stopped. Caught in the moment, he completely forgot about his former charge, Inoue Orihime. She was screaming out his name, her voice calming even Kurosaki's hollow side. Ulquiorra stopped to listen: there was no movement. That girl was going to get them both killed.

"Well, well… " the hollow said. Ulquiorra didn't like the way things were going. "… if you don't want to play…" Ulquiorra definitely didn't like how things were going. He looked at his bandaged palms. "… then I'm guessing your little friend will."

The hollow was at the other side of the wall Ulquiorra was currently leaning on.

He sighted. That woman had a bad influence on him.

"Cero!"

And the wall came down.

Unfortunately, the hollow was still on its feet, but the surprised look on its face was a good enough sign that this was the time to act. Without a second to lose, Ulquiorra sonido-ed over to him, and in a moment of carelessness coming from the hollow, he hit him clear in the chest, sending him flying out threw a wall.

He could feel as the burns in his palms started to bleed, but he tried ignoring it. Looking threw the fresh hole in the wall, he tried to spot his enemy, but much to his surprise, he couldn't see him anywhere.

"That's it, hollow! Fight me! Fight! Fight! Fight! FIGHT!!!"

Before he knew what was happening, Ulquiorra was once again off the ground. He could see buildings, he could see a blown-up intersection, he could hear Inoue's screams and he could feel the hollow's blade pierce his right shoulder. Attacked from behind? He was not expecting something like that. He was careless again.

"Fight me, hollow!"

What was happening to him?

* * *

Orihime didn't know what to do. All she could do is watch helplessly as the wall of a building suddenly blew up and – no, it was not Kurosaki. It was that… that… _thing_ that resembled Ichigo. Yes, that thing flew out, just to vanish in mid-air not even a second later. Then – then she saw it again. This, she couldn't believe. It managed to stab Ulquiorra in the back and for some reason, Ulquiorra wasn't doing anything.

She watched them fall all the way to the ruined street below, the impact leaving a large crater

"Ulquiorra-san!"

She pushed her feet to reach them faster, wishing, _praying_ that there was something she could do.

"Ulquiorra-san!"

It seems fate was most cruel to her. It was the same as that day above Las Noches. Hollow-Ichigo had Ulquiorra pinned to the ground by keeping his right foot on the arrancar's head. He saw the hollow lift one of the swords he was holding, Ichigo's sword, and heard him whisper something that sounded like "it was fun". She watched how the blade slowly got closer and closer to Ulquiorra's neck, and she panicked.

She couldn't let it end the same way again.

"Koten Zanshun! Tsubaki! I reject!"

She saw Tsubaki fly out of her hairpin and in no less than the blink of an eye, he hit the hollow. Unfortunately, the fairy was not able to harm the hollow. If anything the creature felt was just a sting on the cheek. The hollow shot Orihime a look, the wild grin from before disappearing from his face. He was clearly not pleased with her interference.

"You were interrupting something, girl…" said the hollow, now completely facing Orihime. It pushed the sword's blade in the concrete, his eyes never leaving hers. Next thing she knew, he was pulling her off the ground by her hair. It hurt. "And I don't like being interrupted, bitch."

She was scared. Now, she was really scared. She knew she was going to die. But just as Ichigo, she was not ready to give up.

"Kurosaki-kun! Wake up, Kurosaki-kun! You have to wake up!"

The hollow gave her a surprised look before bursting out in laughter. " 'Wake up'? I have to hand it to you girl, you crack me up!" He put her down. "I like you, girl. You make me laugh. That is why I'm going to tell you a little secret: King's dead. The fool just killed himself. I told him not to breath in that thing, I told him to stay away and I told him to let me out so I can cure him. But the fool didn't listen. He never listens. No, we're both on the clear road to death… that is, unless I can fight it. And what better way to fight something that you can't see then fighting something you can and then imagining that you're actually fighting something you can?"

Orihime started taking little steps back. She was so very scared…

"I'll save King's body, but I sure as hell won't let him back in command. No – he got his chance, and he blew it. Now I'm in command!" he paused, time in which he paused to study her shaking body. "And I believe I will start living his life with you…"

But he didn't finish his sentence. Orihime watched as the hollow's eyes widened, just before that grin returned on his face.

"Stabbing from behind?" it asked in amusement. Tough her eyes were clouded with tears, Orihime managed to see Ulquiorra behind the hollow, his sword perching the other's skin.

"If you can then what's stopping me from doing the same?"

The hollow laughed. "That's the spirit, hollow!"

Orihime barely managed to keep up with what just happened next. The hollow turned, shooting a cero at Ulquiorra head. The cero missed tough, as Ulquiorra ducked while supporting his body with his unoccupied hand, he hit the hollow in the face using his legs, just before sending it to the ground by swiping its feet from under it. Apart from the fact that the attack sent him to the ground, the hollow seemed to be fine, since it almost immediately did a back-flip, landing on its feet once again, then used its sword again, intending to cut the smaller hollow in half. Ulquiorra saw it coming and managed to get out of the way just in time. The hollow seemed to have been using too much force though, since he was now having a hard time getting the sword out of the ground.

That was his chance. Using all his power, Ulquiorra fired another cero at the hollow, the force of the blast shooting him back a couple of feet. While the hollow was waiting for the world to stop spinning, Ulquiorra dashed for his sword that was still stuck in the concrete. He needed to release Murciélago.

But just as he managed to touch the hilt, the hollow caught his hand.

"Nice try, hollow."

Instantly, the hollow's other hand was at Ulquiorra's neck, lifting him up from the ground. Silent screams escaped the arrancar's throat as he desperately tried to free himself. Fragile skin started to break and bleed under the strong grasp and soon Ulquiorra found it difficult to breathe. The hollow was suffocating him.

"Yes, that's it! Show me how the pain takes over. Show me how much it hurts!" It squeezed harder and Orihime was sure that if it wouldn't stop, it would Break Ulquiorra's neck.

"Please!" she cried. "Please! Stop! Kurosaki-kun! Wake up! WAKE UP!!!"

The hollow merely grinned when he saw that his prey was struggling less and less with each passing second.

"Oh, just let the kid go!" A deep and loud voice said.

Orihime watched in eve as a large, muscular hand connected to the hollow's face. Almost immediately afterwards, Ulquiorra was lying on the ground, coughing out blood, while the hollow was sent flying till he crashed into a car.

"Who the hell are you?" asked the hollow. It was clear that he was no used to all these interruptions.

The giant however did not respond just yet. He took his time to look at the small black-haired arrancar lying on the floor, Orihime already at his side. Yammi had never seen Ulquiorra in such a state.

"Oy, I asked you a question, bird-brain! You deaf or something!" the hollow said once he was back on his feet.

Yammi gave the unfamiliar hollow a dirty look. "You were killing my partner, idiot. Why would I answer to you? And my name is not 'bird-bran', you freak."

Freak.

That was definitely the wrong word to use in this situation. No sooner than when the word left Yammi's mouth, the alien hollow charged at him, hitting his big body without mercy. He was clearly underestimating the giant.

Catching his fist in his palm, Yammi threw the hollow to the side, trying to make enough time to release. He didn't have enough time however, for as soon as he pushed him back, the hollow returned, an even higher killing intent burning in his yellow eyes. It didn't matter how much he was trying to push him back, the hollow just kept coming back. He wasn't giving him any time to even touch his sword. The damn thing was just too fast.

He felt a foot interact with his face, a knee in the stomach, then a head smashing against his own – and then Yammi was down.

"I guess it's true: the bigger they are, the harder they fall." The hollow said, a cero forming in his hands. "Now, it's time to say good night, bird-brain!"

"Bind, Murciélago!"

The hollow's eyes widened. "What?" The only one that answered him was the spear that went right through his chest. The hollow then fell on one knee, spitting out blood. Strangely enough, even though the pain was there, he was not in any way displeased with it. If anything, he seemed to be enjoying himself.

"Welcome back hollow. I was missing you." He got up to his feet and turned to look at his opponent. "And from the looks of it, you're finally ready to play!" He smiled maniacally.

Ulquiorra was not smiling back. "No, I am not playing." The hollow's smile was gone. Now he was just confused. "I am bringing Kurosaki Ichigo back."

Now, the hollow laughed. "Please! Not that shit again!" He kept on laughing.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, if you hear me, it's time for you to wake up."

"Man, I said all this crap before. King's dead! Get over it! Now, I'm King!" the hollow screamed, right before picking up his sword then dashing over to Ulquiorra, murder written clearly in his eyes. The creature had long since lost its sanity.

Even with Murciélago released, Ulquiorra was having a hard time keeping the hollow off of him. His lungs hurt and it was difficult to breathe. He needed to end this fight fast.

"TIME TO DIE, HOLLOW!!!" Ulquiorra barely avoided Zangetsu's blade, but that was when he got an idea. As the blade touched the ground, he put his foot on it, then, did something nether he or anybody else was expecting: he punched the other hollow right in the face, hard.

Dizzy from the blow, the hollow never noticed when Yammi came from behind and immobilized him by offering the white creature the most painful bear hug he had and ever will receive.

Ulquiorra needed a little time to make the world stop from spinning. Then, when he was sure that the cut over his left eye was nothing serious, he turned to look at the hollow.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, this has gone far enough. Wake up."

"You're wasting your breath, Batsy." The hollow said in a tenanting tone. "He's not going to hear you." Ulquiorra was not so convinced.

"Wake up, shinigami."

"Not listening!" the hollow just kept getting louder and louder.

"Kuro-"

"La-la-la, we can't hear you!" The hollow yelled out with his grin spreading by the second. The thing was obviously enjoying this childish quarrel.

"Kurosaki Ichigo! You need to wake up!" Ulquiorra shouted as loud as he could then did something that managed to shock even Yammi: he slapped the hollow.

For a moment, everyone was silent and unmoving. Orihime had joined up with the others, helping Ulquiorra keep his balance while her eyes studying the hollow's now limb body, all in perfect silence. Ulquiorra, who still didn't let his guard down, was watching the hollow's every move and Yammi simply continued to watch the whole scene with wide eyes. Ulquiorra screaming was certainly something you didn't see every day.

The hollow then moved, end everyone tensed. Orihime hid a bit behind Ulquiorra while the later made one of his green spears appear in his arms, just for precaution. Yammi was just careful not to get outsmarted by the bundle of misery in his grasp.

The hollow blinked once, then twice, then the colors of its eyes started to change, then the hair, then the skin, and finally his whole body. He was not even wearing the white kimono anymore. Right now, the one in Yammi's arms was not a hollow it all.

"Kurosaki-kun?"

It took the young man a while to tell what was happening around him. At first, all he saw was one big blur, then shapes, and then there were voices and then … he was looking at the face of Ulquiorra in his first release form.

"What in the… Ulquiorra? What the hell happened? What –" It was then, that he noticed the poor shape the others were in, and looking around better, he saw what was left of the intersection. He saw the blood, and he saw the scared look on Orihime's face, and he also noticed that Yammi was keeping a firm grip on him. Given his past experiences, it was not hard to tell what happened.

"Ulquiorra? Did… did I do all of this? Did… I kill…"

"Kurosaki-kun! You're back!" Inoue suddenly chirped in, a new found hope glittering in her eyes. That alone, was enough of an answer for him.

"Erm, Ulquiorra, is it alright if I let him go now?" Yammi asked, unsure of what to do. Ulquiorra sighed, allowing his lips to form a small, practically invisible smile.

"Yes Yammi, you may let him go now…" Ulquiorra trailed off, suddenly feeling very tired. When he dropped his spear, Orihime was the only one to notice that it was stained with blood.

"Ulquiorra-san!"

* * *

"And that should do the trick. Just don't overwork yourself, alright? Isane-chan, where is that tea?"

"Coming right away, Unohana-taichou!"

Ulquiorra felt like a mummy. In fact, if he was to look in the mirror, he would even look like one. And to top things off, all the nasty medicine Unohana was giving him seemed to be doing him more harm than good. Or, at least if felt that way.

But he had to admit: seeing the whole house get on its feet the moment they came in through the door was quite something. And although he would have given anything to voice out the words "whoever hits Grimmjow on the head for me gets 10 000 yen" seeing Ichigo's white face when Stark started promising that if he will ever get his hands on the one who did this to his little brother will be impaled in the next telephone pole was just about worth it.

"Here you go Schiffer-san." Unohana said, placing a cup of warm herbal tea in front of him. "This will help you ease the pain in your throat. I added a little bit of honey to make it go down better." Truth be told, he was not one to like tea all that much, but this time he found it very hard to say no.

"Thank you" he said in a weak voice then picked up the tea to take a sip. Feeling as if her work was done, Unohana excused herself and left the room along with Isane. They needed to be present at a meeting. Orihime was right at his side, watching his each and every move like a mother would with a sick child. It was strange to admit it, but right then, he felt like a spoiled child. Kurosaki senior beat his son into loaning him some of his clothes since his own were hardly counting as "clothes" any more, Stark and Yammi had taken the roles of the overprotective big brothers (how did that even come to be?) and for once Ichigo was quiet. As for Grimmjow and Nel – well, it was safe to say that for once they found a hobby that didn't have anything to do with fighting or running from giant worms.

"Hey, what kind of father is that one that cuts of his own son's arm?" he asked to no-one in particular.

"What kind of man cuts off another man's arm?" asked Nell. Grimmjow just looked at her.

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

Finally, it was a little more peaceful and quiet for a while. After today, everybody seemed to need that little bit of relaxation. But alas, nothing stays nice for too long. Ulquiorra was just about to take another sip of his tea when _he_ came.

"Hello everybody! Spirits be with you! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"

Don Kanonji.

"What the hell do you want old man?" Ichigo asked. Ulquiorra could tell that he was not in the mood for this.

"I'm not old! I, the magnificent Don Kanonji will give you the honor to be the first to see the first episode from my new series 'Karakura Mysteries'!" Out of no-where, the odd man pulled out a tape and pushed it into the video recorder.

"Hey, we were watching that!" Grimmjow yelled out, ready to hit the man with a chair if necessary. Unohana had scared him out of even thinking about using his fists or sword on normal humans.

The screen was now showing one of the oddest mystery show intros there had ever existed. There was so much… glitter.

"This new show will make the ratings go sky-high! Sky-high I tell you! Oh, look! This is where I'll be exorcising a ghost. This old abandoned building has been like this for years and I-"

"Is leaving!" Ichigo barked in, pushing the older man out the door.

"Number 1 Pupil! Why are you doing this to me?!" Don Kanonji whimpered. Now that was pathetic. "Karakura White! Please! Help me!" he yelled out, looking at Ulquiorra. The arrancar merely lifted an eyebrow.

"Karakura… White?" He was not amused. He acted stoic and uncaring to the world, and most of the time he was, but all the time he was in made him be "in a bad mood".

"No, wait!" Don said as Ichigo was still trying to push him out the door. Instead of doing so, the man slipped back in, making Ichigo lose his balance and fall right out of the house. "I feel something dark coming from… Karakura White!"

Grimmjow rolled his eyes. "No shit, Sherlock." He whispered to himself, noticing how hard it was for the smaller hollow to control his spiritual pressure.

"Please leave." Was all Ulquiorra said, the mere sound of his voice sending shivers down Kanonji's spine.

"Ok, you heard the man, now leave!" Ichigo said, trying once more to get the man out of his house. Where was his dad when you needed him?

"Babe! Please! I won't anger you any more, I promise!"

"Don't "babe" me! Now, GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes once again. He'll never understand humans. Getting back to his tea, he spotted something in the corner of his eye. Looking closer, he noticed that the TV was still showing the images on the tape. There was the Don and there were some scales, there was fog and there was a strange construction behind him. But none of those things interested him. He could have sworn it was something in the fog. Getting up from his seat, he went to take a better look.

"Ulquiorra-san? Is anything the matter?"

He was not sure.

"Can you operate this?" Ulquiorra asked Orihime. Orihime looked slightly surprised, but nodded yes. "Could you back up the recording a bit?"

"Sure." And she did as he asked. She was not exactly sure what he was looking for tough.

"Stop! Now, a little forward… wait… could you freeze here?" Ulquiorra ordered while unconsciously gesturing with his right hand according to his commands.

She did just that, and then…

"What is that?!" Suddenly, everyone stopped all they were doing and came closer to the TV. Even the Don seemed curious. He was sure nothing was supposed to happen yet.

"Is that…" Nel started, obviously surprised. "A ghost?"

* * *

Yey for battle scene! First one I ever wrote … And Hichigo is one hard character to write … And I feel bad for Ulquiorra … I'm already putting him threw hell and it's only chapter 7. I have no ideas how long this fic will be, but one thing's for sure: if you guys will leave me nice reviews I'll make you more chapters :3


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